After the Fire is Gone
by TBorah89
Summary: Rayna tries desperately to convince herself that a life with Luke is what she wants, but that gets harder with every day that passes. Something comes up that could put her newfound engagement in jeopardy. Deacon waits not so patiently in the wings for her to come to her senses. When she drops a bombshell on him will he be able to handle it or will he revert to type and run?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is my first shot at writing a Nashville fic. It's Deacon and Rayna centered, but don't worry other characters will pop up. It starts off as being Ruke, but I promise you Deyna is endgame. I did something different with this fic. I've always felt like Deacon never got the respect that he deserved as Maddie's father and it was just used as a plot point. I've also always felt like Deacon needed to grow a set and stand up for himself every now and then. There were also a couple things the writers did that I didn't agree with and I decided to rectify that here. This starts out the night that Deacon and Luke both proposed but it gets completely AU from there. I try to fill in the blanks using flashbacks, but if I need to I will do chapters that are based in the past. Anyway I hope you guys enjoy my take on Nashville.

* * *

Chapter 1

Rayna stared at the two rings on the counter in front of her. Each style of ring represented the personality of the man that had given it to her. The seven karat sparkler that Luke had slipped on her finger in front of fifty thousand fans was bold and ostentatious just like he was. The diamond band that Deacon had pressed into her hand after he begged her to give him a shot reflected his plain and simple nature. The men that had given her the rings represented different things too.

Deacon was her past a tale littered with empty whiskey bottles, unreached dreams, and broken promises. Any future she could have with him would be uncertain. In the back of her mind she would probably always be waiting for the bottom to drop out again. Luke represented an uncomplicated and stable future. She'd be able to depend on him and he would always be there for her. She didn't have any of the baggage or painful memories with him that she had with Deacon. She could deal with the lifestyle he led if it meant security for her and her girls. She'd married for stability once before and she could do it again.

Still though there was an undeniable passion when she was with Deacon that nothing else she'd ever known had come close to matching. They were fire and gasoline together burning hot, fast, and bright. They'd come close to burning each other to the ground on more than a few occasions. The most recent had been the car accident that had robbed her of two weeks of life and almost left her daughters motherless. Maddie was the age she'd been when she'd lost her mother and she shuddered when she thought about how close history had come to repeating itself.

Maddie that was another thing she had to take into account. She'd already disrupted her daughter's life so much and she owed her some sense of normalcy. So no matter how badly she ached to be with Deacon she just couldn't there was too much uncertainty when it came to him. There always had been and there always would be. But still the magic they created when they were together was something that she couldn't forget no matter how hard she tried.

Her mind wandered to the last time they had given into that passion.

 _Rayna stood on the front porch of Deacon's house. Given the status of things between them at the moment she wasn't exactly thrilled to be there. She knocked on the door impatiently._

 _Deacon opened the door in a t-shirt and pair of jeans. He looked surprised to see his old flame. "Ray, come on in. What are you doing here?" He opened the door wider to allow her entry._

" _I came by to talk to you about a few things." Rayna walked into the house and took a seat on the couch._

" _Can I get you some tea?" Deacon didn't wait for her answer. He poured them both a glass of sweet tea and brought it back into the living room._

" _Thanks," Rayna smiled at him._

" _You said you wanted to talk." Deacon sat on the edge of his chair with his elbows resting on his knees._

" _I just wanted to thank you not only for what you went on tv and said about being Maddie's father, but for what you did in the lawyer's office today. You didn't have to let Teddy continue to be a part of her life. I know that it means a lot to him and it means a lot to me too." Rayna told him._

" _She's my little girl, Ray. She loves him. He was all she knew for the first thirteen years of her life. I wasn't gonna cut him out regardless of how I feel about him." Deacon shrugged. It had been the right thing to do._

" _I just know it can't have been easy for you and I'm grateful to you for putting our daughter first." Rayna leaned forward and met eyes with him._

" _I'm sorry that things got so out of hand the way they did. I never meant for it to go that far." Deacon apologized._

" _You were right though. You did have a right to have rights to your daughter without having to answer to anyone else." Rayna could acknowledge that he'd had a point._

" _So, how are things with you and Wheeler?" Deacon asked awkwardly. He didn't know what to say to her or how to act around her anymore._

" _Up in the air I guess. He said that he needed some time." Rayna shrugged her shoulders. "Deacon, things don't have to be this awkward between us. We mean a lot to each other and we share a daughter. We need to make this work for her sake."_

" _You're right," Deacon grinned. "Whatcha got goin on tonight?"_

" _Nothing, the girls are with Teddy and other than going up to the hospital I don't have anything else on my plate." Rayna replied._

" _What do you say you and me write together for old time's sake?" Deacon asked._

" _I'd like that a lot." Rayna smiled at him._

 _Of course with them songwriting was never just songwriting and before the night had ended they'd ended up in bed together._

Rayna sighed and collected both the rings from the counter. Thinking of that night of steamy passion with Deacon was enough to sway her resolve that she couldn't be with him.

"You're quiet this morning. You'd think you were preparing for a funeral instead of a wedding. Your album just dropped at number one and you got engaged you should be on top of the world right now." Tandy stood at the counter slicing up fruit.

"I just have a lot on my mind that's all." Rayna grabbed a piece of the fruit Tandy had cut.

"Anything you want to talk about?" Tandy arched her eyebrow.

"Deacon stopped by last night after the show and he proposed to me too." Rayna squinted her eyes. She knew how her sister felt about Deacon.

"You're kidding me right? How stupid and selfish can he be? What is this a monkey see monkey do type thing? He can't just let you be happy without trying to destroy it." Tandy scoffed and pointed the knife in her sister's direction.

Rayna lowered her sister's hand. "Be nice, he is Maddie's dad and my first love."

"He's barely Maddie's dad and he's never been good enough for you." Tandy stated bluntly. She pinched the bridge of her nose.

"He's Maddie's dad he has joint custody with me. And you never gave him a chance. You are our father's daughter." Rayna pointed out to her.

"Something that daddy offered to stop for you, but you wouldn't let him. Forget what I think. You know how I feel on the matter. What do you want?" Tandy tried another approach.

"Luke has all these really great qualities. He's successful, he's caring, and he's stable. Deacon well he's Deacon there's not much more I can say for him than that. I don't know I guess it would help if Deacon and I could be within spiting distance of each other without either fighting or being wrapped up in each other's arms." Rayna sighed.

"What's going on between you and Deacon now?" Tandy stared her down.

"The night that we settled Maddie's custody thing I went over to his place and one thing led to another like it always does. We had a little fling before Luke got hurt and I don't know. I just know that Luke doesn't make me feel like I'm on an emotional roller coaster every time I look at him." Rayna banged her head on the counter lightly.

"You have your answer then. You never learn when it comes to Deacon. Deacon and you have never not been Deacon and you. You're stuck with each other for life, but the only way you're ever gonna make it as parents is if you set some firm boundaries with him. Are you gonna tell Luke?" Tandy patted her hand comfortingly.

"Am I going to tell Luke that I slept with Deacon while he left me hanging in limbo? Absolutely not I'm a grown woman I don't have to answer for that. Am I going to tell him that Deacon proposed and kissed me? Yes, I can't start a marriage off with a lie like that. You saw what happened the last time I kept something that big to myself it ended up blowing up in my face." Rayna replied.

"I still say that you did what was best for Maddie by keeping her from Deacon. She grew up in a happy healthy environment." Tandy couldn't just let the subject drop.

"Don't you have somewhere to be like up at the hospital visiting daddy?" Rayna rolled her eyes.

"I'll go see him once I'm done with you." Tandy wasn't that easy to get rid of.

Lamar was in the cardiac intensive care unit at Vanderbilt Hospital after he'd suffered a heart attack during a meeting with Teddy. Emergency open heart surgery had saved his life, but he'd lingered in a coma for weeks before finally coming out of it.

"No go see him before they throw him out for his bad attitude. He's always more manageable with you. I have some things I need to take care of anyway." Rayna rushed to get her sister away from her.

* * *

Luke was in the stables brushing his horse after his morning ride. Rayna watched as the muscles in his broad back rippled with his movements. There was no denying that he was a very attractive man, but being attracted to him wasn't the problem. The problem was the jumbled mess in her heart and her head where he and Deacon were concerned.

"Hey, there you are. Sorry I had to run out on you like that earlier." Luke greeted her with a bright smile.

"It's no problem I just stopped by because I was hoping that we could talk." Rayna smiled back at him.

"We didn't do much talking earlier. Have a seat." Luke plopped down on a hay bale and patted the spot next to him.

Rayna sat down next to him. "So that was some proposal."

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to pressure you or put you on the spot like that. If you need time to think about it I understand." Luke looked at her tenderly.

"It's not that. Deacon came by the house after the show last night and he proposed too." Rayna rushed the words out of her mouth.

Luke rubbed his hands over the fabric of his jeans. "I can't say I blame him. It would be impossible to lose you twice. If I have my way about it that's exactly what's gonna happen."

"It's complicated there are always going to be feelings there between Deacon and I." Rayna offered.

"You and Deacon have been intertwined with each other since I've known you. I have this thing tonight for Edgehill if you wanna come that's fine and if you don't I understand that too." Luke left the ball in her court.

* * *

"Ray, that you?" Deacon was in the process of packing up his gear to take to the bluebird.

"Yeah, it's me." Rayna stepped into his line of sight.

Deacon looked up and gave her a sexy grin. "Hey, I didn't think I'd see you this soon."

"Deacon, please don't smile at me like that you're only gonna make this harder." Rayna pleaded with him.

Deacon got up off the floor and took her hands. "Come on, Ray, give me a chance. Things have gotten better for us. We finally worked out how we can all be parents to Maddie." He thought back to the day that they had finally settled Maddie's custody.

 _Rayna and Deacon sat across from each other in her lawyer's conference room. Rayna was dressed in her usual diva fashion meaning she looked damn good like always. Deacon had cleaned up in the sense that he wore a dress shirt with his jeans for a change. Teddy sat at the corner of the table with his lawyer scowling._

" _Mr. Claybourne, Ms. Jaymes, Mr. Conrad, we have the custody arrangement prepared for your signatures. Let me just go over it to make sure that it is satisfactory for all of you." Rayna's lawyer began. "It's been established that Mr. Claybourne is indeed the biological father of Maddie Conrad. We've changed her birth certificate to reflect that. Joint custody will be split between Ms. Jaymes and Mr. Claybourne and Mr. Conrad will still have visitation rights and legal guardianship." He slid an agreement over to each party._

 _Deacon's lawyer slid the agreement over to him._

 _Deacon looked it over and nodded his head in satisfaction. He'd been the one to start this. After Teddy had gotten up in arms about Maddie being at his house for guitar lessons while her other grades were slipping he'd known that he had to do something if he wanted to be a part of his daughter's life in a meaningful way._

" _Happy now, Deacon?" Teddy spit out hatefully._

" _Teddy, don't start." Rayna warned him._

" _It's not about being happy it's about being fair. If you could have been fair it wouldn't have come to this." Deacon signed the document in front of him._

" _Fair? I'm losing my daughter. I'm the only father she's ever known. How is that fair to me or to her?" Teddy angrily scribbled his name across the document._

" _You decided that you had more of a right to my daughter than I did. That's what's not fair. You stole everything from me. You got years with her that I didn't get." Deacon fired back._

" _Don't do this here, you two. Try to behave like rational adults. This agreement not only works well for all of us it's what's best for Maddie." Rayna signed the copy of the agreement that was in front of her._

"That's all we are co-parents. And that's the way things are gonna have be from now on." Rayna's heart broke as she saw the hurt flash in his eyes.

"Ray, I'm playing at the Bluebird tonight I have a song I want to play for you. Just come and listen to it. That's all I ask." Deacon squeezed her hands tighter. He took a chance and kissed her.

Rayna kissed him back for a moment before she pulled away. "We're not kids anymore, Deacon. We can't just sing a song and magically make all of our problems go away. Luke can give me a stable future without all the messy baggage that we have in our past." She pulled her hands from his and walked out the door before he said anything else that would make her want to stay.

* * *

Deacon was taking a breather in the alley behind the Bluebird before his set started. He was more than a little surprised when a big black Escalade pulled up and Luke got out from behind the wheel.

Without warning Luke walked up and punched Deacon in the mouth. "Why can't you leave her alone and let her be happy?"

Deacon ran his tongue over the inside of his lip and tasted blood. "Why can't you?"

Luke was already back in the car and driving away.

Deacon spit blood out of his mouth and then he smiled to himself. There was only one reason that Luke would have been that pissed off. He walked back into the Bluebird to get ready for his set.

"Dad!"

"Uncle Deacon!"

Maddie and Daphne both ran over and wrapped their arms around him.

"What are ya'll doin' here?" Deacon planted a kiss on the top of both their heads.

"The girls heard that you were playing tonight and they just had to come. I thought it would be nice to get out and do something with them." Teddy offered Deacon his hand to shake.

Deacon shook his hand. "Teddy,"

"Deacon," Teddy nodded his head. The two seemed to have a bit of a truce in place.

"Have any of ya'll heard from Rayna today?" Deacon asked out of curiosity.

"No I haven't heard anything from mom. She's probably too busy with Luke." Maddie's rolled eyes said exactly how she felt about the man.

Teddy's cell rang and he answered it. "Yeah, I understand, I'll be right there." He hung up. "Listen, girls, I have to go for a little while. I will be back as soon as I can. Deacon, can you keep an eye on them?"

"Yeah, I got 'em it's no problem." Deacon agreed.

"Maybe we should go sing with him so he can keep a really close eye on us." Daphne suggested.

Deacon and Teddy locked eyes for a moment and then they both nodded.

"One song and you get someone to record it for me if I'm not back in time." Teddy squatted down in front of Daphne.

"You've got it, dad." Daphne giggled.

Teddy pulled both the girls into a hug. "I love you girls, behave yourselves." He made his way out the door.

"What do you say we get some food in ya'll? I can't have you going up on stage hungry." Deacon put an arm around each girl. He led them over to the table he was sitting at. He flagged a waitress down. "Can I get a round of root beers here?"

"Deacon, are you still gonna hang out with us even when mom marries Luke?" Daphne asked innocently. The little girl didn't realize what a loaded question that had been.

"Of course I am, Squirt. Maddie is my daughter and you're her sister and you come from your momma that makes you family to me. We will still hang out together all the time. You can't get rid of me that easily." Deacon reassured her.

"At least someone cares about what we want and how we feel." Maddie rolled her eyes so far back that it was a miracle that they didn't stick like that.

"Maddie, I'm sure that it wasn't meant to come across that way." Deacon was still a little unsure with her, but he was learning as he went. He'd pretty much just lied to her face. He couldn't imagine what Luke had been thinking by not running his proposal by those girls first. It wasn't just the girls it was his own kids he'd left in the dark too.

"Try to say like you believe it, dad." Maddie's attitude was in overdrive.

Teddy came back in just as the girls took the stage with Deacon. He could grudgingly admit that he was good with him. The truth was he'd probably never like the man, but he had a little respect for him because of the way he treated Daphne.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to my two singing partners for the night Maddie and Daphne Conrad. They are gonna run me out of a job in no time flat." Deacon strummed the opening chords for A Life That's Good on his guitar.

Stupid that one word kept running through Rayna's head as she snuck into the back of the Bluebird through the service entrance. She'd gotten all dressed up to go to that event with Luke, but she just couldn't fight the pull that Deacon had on her. She had to at least hear this song before she decided anything. She had shown up just in time to hear most of his song with the girls.

She watched now as the girls climbed down off the stage. Deacon began to strum a haunting melody on his guitar.

" _My broken promises broke your heart time and time again. I let everything fall apart I was such a fool back then. But you loved me once I know so many sorries ago."_ Deacon started his song.

The words resonated within Rayna. She'd felt that way so many times. He'd get drunk, break his promises, and then apologize over and over. It was a cycle they had been stuck in with no end in sight.

" _So here I am and I just pray that you will listen long enough to hear me when I say. This brand new man won't let you down if you let me show you I know how to love you now."_ Deacon's voice sounded hauntingly beautiful. His eyes scanned the crowd looking all over for a certain redhead.

Rayna was cut to the core. She could hear the raw emotion in his voice as he pleaded for another chance. But in the back of her mind all she could think about was the endless cycle of broken promises and drunken rages.

" _There was a time when I held your hand I would have died to keep you safe. That's why it kills me that I'm the man that put those tears on your face. I don't blame you for moving on and maybe all of my chances are gone."_ Deacon's eyes filled with unshed tears as it hit him that she probably wasn't coming. His eyes stayed glued to the door anyway in hopes that he was wrong.

The stark truth of what he was saying hit her like a shotgun blast to the chest. He'd been far from the only one to make mistakes in their relationship. She'd lied to him about his child, he'd had a disease that it'd taken him awhile to beat. Some days she kicked herself for giving up on him.

" _Well, here I am and I just pray that you will listen long enough to hear me when I say. This brand new man won't let you down if you let me show you I know how to love you now. I see that look in your eye you're scared and I understand why. So am I._

" _But, here I am and I just pray that you will listen long enough to hear me when I say. This brand new man won't let you down if let me show you I know how love you now. Girl let me show you I know how to love you now."_ Deacon bowed his head when he finished singing. He blinked the tears from his eyes and looked up with a smile on his face. He had to put on a brave face for the girls.

Rayna fled the building with tears streaming down her face when she saw Deacon get down off the stage and shake hands with Teddy. No matter how much she wanted to choose him and let him prove himself to her she just couldn't. It was better for everyone involved if she chose a life with Luke. Maybe if she told herself that enough times she'd start to believe it.

* * *

Luke was mugging his way down a red carpet. He posed for pictures with his fans and stopped to answer questions from reporters. He was dressed in an expensive black suit with his best boots and black cowboy hat. He turned to look over his shoulder when he heard a din of activity behind him. A huge smile came to his face when he saw Rayna walking towards him.

"I didn't think you were gonna show." He put his hands on her hips and let his eyes drink her in. She was the most beautiful woman that he'd ever seen in his entire life.

"I love you for what you've always been to me." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. She flashed her engagement ring for the reporters to take all the pictures they wanted.

"Come on, let's go on in." He put his hand possessively in the small of her back and guided her into the venue.

What followed was a blur of handshakes, business talk, and people generally kissing Luke's ass and talking about how great he was.

Rayna stood off in a corner of the room with a glass of champagne in her hand. She looked around and knew right away that she'd made an absolutely horrible mistake. The only thing she could do now was tough it out and hope for the best.

* * *

Scarlett walked in the front door of Deacon's house using her key. She dropped her smallest suitcase right by the front door. She was far too tired to do anything else with it. She would bum a t-shirt and pair of pajama pants from Deacon for the night. She'd just gone through the road trip from hell with Gunnar and Avery and all she wanted to do was sleep. She needed to forget that this day ever happened.

A small lamp on the end table flipped on and startled her.

"Scarlett, what the hell are you doing back here?" Deacon had been sitting around in the dark since getting back from the Bluebird.

"I decided not to leave after all. Why are you sitting around in the dark like some type of creepy person?" She arched her eyebrow. She wasn't really sure that she wanted him to offer her an explanation for that.

"Woman problems," He picked up his nearly melted icepack from the table and pressed it to his mouth. He didn't know which hurt worse his pride or his heart.

"She's engaged to another man, I'm thinking that's enough to keep it from being a problem ever again." She sat down on the couch beside him.

"Don't say anything that's gonna make me feel any better now." He scoffed.

"So you want me to lie to you and give you false hope then?" She was tired and her sassy side was coming out to play.

"No, I don't want false hope. As long as she isn't married to him I still have a chance. I ain't giving her up without a fight this time. She just doesn't know that she wants me to fight for her yet." He replied stubbornly. He wasn't gonna give up on her that easily. She just didn't know what she wanted yet.

"You really don't know when to give up do you?" She laid her head on his shoulder.

"No, I don't. If it's worth having it's worth fighting for." He kissed the top of her head. "I'm glad you're staying Maddie and I would have really missed you around here."

"I'm glad I'm staying too. Someone has to be a buffer between you two. You'd be lost if I weren't here to interpret teenage girl for you. I can't let her suffer because of your lack of social skills." She laughed and closed her eyes.

Deacon just sat there quietly lost in thought. He'd find a way to win Rayna back and then Luke better watch out.

* * *

A/N: Here is the first chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and added this story to their alerts.

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Chapter 2

Two gloomy faces greeted Rayna at the kitchen counter. Maddie and Daphne ate their breakfast in silence the sour expressions staying put even as they chewed. They were dressed in their school uniforms.

"Alright, ya'll are gonna tell me what's wrong right now. I can't take another week like this." Rayna got herself a cup of coffee. She was going to need it if the girls' behavior over the past week was any indication. Maddie had been even more sullen than usual and Daphne wasn't being her normal bubbly self.

"I don't know why it's not like what we think matters anyway." Maddie gave a pronounced eye roll.

"You're not gonna be here to do anything about it anyway. You'll be on tour and so will Deacon. Everyone is going away and Maddie and I are getting left behind." Daphne said what her sister wouldn't say.

"That is not true. I do care what ya'll think and how you feel. If there is something that you're not comfortable with you can tell me. And you aren't getting left behind you'll be with your dad. I will be home every chance that I can be and you'll come visit me when you have breaks from school." Rayna reassured the girls.

"Mom, you just added more dates to your tour. You're going to be gone a whole year." Daphne sighed.

"I know it seems like forever, sweet girl, but I promise you it won't be that bad. Then I will be home and things will go back to normal." Rayna ran a hand through her hair.

"Except we will be living with three strangers in a house that isn't ours." Maddie scoffed.

"Maddie, it'll take some getting used to, but it will be normal soon enough." Rayna dug the heels of her hands into her eye sockets. "Who's day is it to take you two to school?" She had a marathon day on her plate and didn't even have time to get them to school.

"Dad is supposed to get us this morning and Uncle Deacon is supposed to get us after school." Daphne chirped.

Deacon walked through the side door unannounced. "Knock, knock, I hope I'm not too early for ya'll."

"Thank God, I'll be in the truck." Maddie picked up her backpack and walked outside without another word.

"Deacon," Daphne threw her arms around his waist. "I thought dad was gonna pick us up this morning. I'm so excited to see you."

"He had some emergency come up this morning and he called and asked me to switch with him." Deacon patted her head affectionately.

"You and Teddy talk?" Rayna arched her eyebrow. This was the first time she'd seen him since that night at the Bluebird.

"About the girls." Deacon got the sense that Rayna wanted to talk to him so he stooped down and looked Daphne in the eye. "Why don't you go join your sister in the truck and put on some music? It's your morning to play DJ. Just remember no Taylor Swift or Juliette Barnes it's too early in the morning for that."

"Ok," Daphne grabbed her bag and ran outside to join her sister.

"So, just to warn you Maddie is in a mood. I don't know what's gotten into her. Besides my engagement to Luke that's the only thing I can think of." Rayna thought out loud.

"I get the feeling that they both felt blindsided. Like their whole world is changin' yet again and they didn't get a say in it." Deacon offered helpfully.

"Do you think I planned for that to happen or that I wanted them to feel this way? I was blindsided too. Those girls have been through enough because of me. I don't want them to feel uncomfortable. They will get used to the idea in time." Rayna retorted.

"You may not realize it yet, but the one thing I know for sure is you'll never marry him. The lifestyle he lives is so different than what you have ever wanted for yourself or those girls. Right now you're so damn determined to prove me wrong that you can't see things as clearly as I can." Deacon didn't hold back.

"Deacon, don't make this any harder on me than it already is. I made my choice if you truly loved me and wanted me to be happy you'd find a way to be ok with that." Rayna spit back at him.

"That's the thing I know you well enough to know that you want me to fight for you even though you can't admit it yet. You'll let me know when the time is right. Now I have to be goin'. I gotta get those girls to school on time." Deacon hid a smirk as he walked to the door. "Oh, and you can tell Wheeler that that cheap shot he landed outside the Bluebird last week was his one free shot next time I hit back."

Rayna stared at the door in disbelief after he'd gone. She didn't know who she was more pissed with at the moment Luke, Deacon, or herself. Deacon for daring to talk to her the way he just had. Luke for hitting Deacon and then lying to her about it. And herself for letting Deacon's words get to her that easily. She couldn't deny the truth in what he'd said though. Somewhere down inside there was a piece of her that wanted him to fight for her. A piece of her that wanted desperately to run after him and tell him she chose him.

She'd chosen him the moment that she'd laid her soul bare to him along with the rest of her being the night they'd slept together again. He knew it and she knew it even if that was the last thing that she wanted to admit at the moment. She didn't have time to wallow in her feelings for Deacon she had a morning full of meetings to get to.

* * *

"You didn't have to come with me to do this. I know how busy you are today." Tandy told her sister as they walked down the hall of the hospital.

"He's not just your responsibility to deal with he's mine too. I hate to hear him if we don't come visit him every now and then." Rayna replied.

"I talked to him on the phone earlier and he's in rare form today." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"When isn't he?" Rayna asked as they came to a stop outside of a private room.

"He's gotten even worse recently it seems." Tandy opened the door to the room.

Lamar sat up in a chair with a silk robe over sweatpants and a t-shirt. It wasn't up to his usual standards, but he looked good given the circumstances. His hair was combed back and he'd grown a distinguished looking beard.

"There are my daughters." He greeted them with a smile.

"Hi, daddy," Tandy kissed the top of his head.

Rayna hugged her father quickly. "You're looking better."

"I'm surprised that you could make time in your busy schedule to come see me. Your face has been all over the news for the last week." He commented.

"I only have a little bit of time this morning. I have to head over to my new office. After that Luke and I have a meeting with our people." Rayna told him.

"I like how Mr. Wheeler had the courtesy to ask me for your hand in marriage." He snorted. "Anyway, I will be brief. They are letting me out of here in a couple of days. They will only let me out if I have someone to look after me for the first few weeks. They don't want me on my own yet."

"I'm getting ready to go out on tour. Unless you're gonna tag along with me I'm not going to be much help in that area." Rayna shrugged.

"I'll be running things at Highway Sixty-five and I'll be pretty busy with that." Tandy added.

"I'm supposed to be under the least amount of stress as possible right now. If I can't find anyone to look after me they will only release me to a nursing home." Lamar was good at manipulating his daughter's without them realizing he was doing it.

"If they let him out tomorrow or the day after I will be here to take him home. It won't be a problem for us to get him a private nurse while he continues to recover at home." Rayna suggested.

"That's a good idea that way someone will be here to keep an eye on him while I'm working." Tandy agreed.

"I knew that we could come to a satisfactory agreement." He smiled. If he had those two in line then he could devote his time and energy to figuring out who had turned on him. He still strongly suspected Teddy, but time would tell.

* * *

After he dropped the girls at school Deacon stopped by to pick his gear up. He assumed that Luke would no longer want him on his tour and that was fine with him. He had a daughter that needed him around right now anyway. Roadies were busy moving equipment everywhere and it was just utter chaos.

"Hey, I'm here to pick my gear up." Deacon told the first idle looking roadie he found.

"Freakin' Deacon, I'm glad you decided to show up. I was gonna call you." Luke's voice boomed from behind him.

Deacon stiffened at the sound of his voice. He'd been in hopes that he could get in and out without running into him. "I was trying to save you the trouble. I just came to get my gear and then I'll be out of your hair."

"Why would you be getting your gear?" Luke had a confused look on his face.

"I figured that you wouldn't want me on the tour anymore and frankly I rather not spend anymore time with you than I have to." Deacon looked at him like he was crazy.

"This is just business it's nothing personal. Read your contract it says it's up to my discretion. You can go, but if you do I'll just keep your equipment until you fulfill your end of the contract or come up with the money to buy it back to me. Like I said it's only business, son." Luke patted him on the back and walked away.

Deacon stood there fuming. He could say that this was only business all he wanted to, but he knew that he was trying to keep him as far away from Rayna as possible.

* * *

"Luke, do we really need all these people to plan a wedding?" Rayna looked around the packed conference room. There were spreadsheets up on the projector and copies of their schedules. They'd only been engaged a week and already he was pushing to set a date.

"We are both busy people, darlin'. It's easier to do it this way. They know our schedules better than we do." Luke kissed her cheek.

"We found a date that works well for both of you. It's the weekend before the CMA Awards." Bucky rubbed the top of his head. He knew that Rayna wasn't going to react well to that.

"Bucky, that's really soon. That doesn't leave a whole lot of time to plan." Rayna looked unsure about that date.

"Ray, it's either then or June of two thousand sixteen. That is the only free date you two have that overlaps until then. Unless you just want to run off and elope." Bucky told her.

"That idea might have some merit." Rayna didn't like the idea of being rushed into anything.

Luke could tell from the look on her face that something was up with her. "Ya'll need to give us the room for a minute."

The conference room quickly emptied out of staff leaving just the two of them alone.

"Darlin', you act like there's something wrong." He broached the subject.

"This is all just really sudden. The last week has just been a whirlwind and it doesn't look like it's gonna be calming down anytime soon. What are we thinking, Luke? We are rushing this whole thing. You and I haven't even been together that long. We both have kids to take into account. It just feels like too much." Rayna put her head in her hands.

"All of what you're saying is true, but when you know you know. I've wanted you since the moment that I laid eyes on you and I don't ever intend to let you go again. I just don't want to have to wait that long to be married to you." Luke put his fingers under her chin and brought her eyes up to meet his.

"You don't wanna wait that long to be married to me or you don't want to wait that long and take the chance that Deacon may change my mind?" She didn't even try to stop those words from leaving her mouth. She stared him down.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" He got up and started pacing the floor. He ran his hand over his beard.

"So you weren't ever gonna tell me that you went to see Deacon at the Bluebird last week? Or were you gonna tell that part and leave out the part where you sucker punched him?" She quirked her perfectly manicured eyebrow at him.

"How'd you find out about that?" He looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"It doesn't matter how I found out. What matters is that you did it and didn't tell me about it. I don't care how you feel about him, he is Maddie's dad and you can't just go around hitting him." She lectured him.

"Was it childish on my part? Probably, but I don't see why he can't just leave you alone. I think he's messed with your feelings enough for one lifetime." He replied.

"I mean it, Luke, you have to learn to live with the fact that Deacon is always going to be a part of my life. If you can't do that then this isn't going to work out." She told him flatly.

"I'm sorry that was stupid on my part. I just don't want to lose you; I love you so damn much." He put his hands on her cheeks and kissed her gently.

"It's fine, I love you too. I just want us to be honest with each other." She relented.

"Now, what do you say we just let these people plan this wedding for us and we take the rest as it comes?" He asked.

"Ok, we can do that. Lord knows I don't need anything else on my plate right now." She agreed.

"I think you'll feel better if we just get this wedding out of the way. It will be one less thing for you to worry about. I have some free time tonight before we go out on tour in the morning and I was hoping that you'd be free to have diner with me." He gave her his best charming smile.

"As much as I would love to I can't. They are releasing my father from the hospital this week and I need to go get his house ready for him." She turned him down.

"That's ok, I'll come with you and we can get something to eat when you're done." He wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"I think that sounds like a great idea." She gave him a smile that she didn't really feel.

* * *

"Are we really still so awkward together that we need Daphne or Scarlett as a buffer between us to keep up the flow of conversation?" Deacon asked Maddie. They sat around his kitchen table eating dinner in silence.

"What did you say, dad?" Maddie blinked her eyes rapidly to pull herself out of the zone she was in.

"I said we aren't all that new at this father-daughter thing anymore and we shouldn't still need Daphne or Scarlett around to keep up the flow of conversation." He repeated himself for her.

"It's not that it's awkward. I was just thinking and in a zone." She shrugged her shoulders and pushed her food around her plate.

"Why don't you tell me what's wrong?" He asked.

"What makes you think something is wrong?" She answered with a question.

"Maddie, you're a lot more like me than you realize. You're over there silently stewing about something. That's what I do when something is bothering me. I want to be left alone to brood about it." He called her out.

"I just don't understand how mom could spring something else on us like this. I mean he didn't even ask us what we thought about it he just did it in front of all those people. She's changing our lives yet again and she doesn't care how we feel about it." She finally let out how she was feeling.

"That had nothing to do with your momma. You're right he should have at least warned you girls first before he did something like that. That wasn't fair to anyone. But if she's happy we need to try to respect that." He fed her a line that he didn't even believe. Then again he knew that Rayna wasn't happy.

"How could you just let her go again? How come you didn't fight for her? Why are you just going along with this?" Tears poured down her cheeks.

"What do you want me to do?" He ran a hand through his hair.

"I don't know tell her how you feel. There is no way that she doesn't still feel the same way about you." She cried.

"I did tell her how I feel. I asked her to marry me and she turned me down. I don't know what else to do right now." He banged his hand on the table.

Maddie rushed over to his side of the table and threw her arms around his neck. "How could she turn you down?" She buried her face in his neck and cried.

"I don't know, Sweetheart, I don't know. Shh, it's gonna be ok. You'll always have me I'm not going anywhere." Deacon hugged her tightly and rubbed her back.

"No I won't, you're getting ready to go out on tour tomorrow." She cried harder.

"I'll visit you every chance I get and you'll come visit me. I'll tell you what. I have the weekend before the CMA Awards free. I'll be home and we will go up to the cabin together and do something fishing. You'll like it there I promise." His heart broke for his daughter and he held her tighter.

* * *

Luke's Escalade pulled to a stop on the brick drive in front of Lamar's Belle Meade mansion. "Wow, you really don't ever have to worry about money for your label if your daddy's got a place that looks like this. Of course you don't have to worry about money anyway you could sit at home and just be Mrs. Luke Wheeler."

He got out of the car with a chuckle and opened up her door for her. "I'm only kidding I know you want more than that." He added when he saw the look that crossed her face.

"I make my own way in this world. About the only thing I've ever gotten from my daddy is his ambition." Rayna got out of the car and used her key to open the front door. "Being back in this place brings back memories."

"I bet growing up in a place like this you do have some good memories." He commented.

"Not exactly I was standing on this very rug the night he threw me out of the house." That gave her pause. He didn't really know her at all and she didn't know him for that matter. She sometimes thought that he was in love with the idea of her and not who she was as a person.

"I didn't know that. I've never met your father in person. I just heard people sing his praises and that he's a great man." He put his hand in the small of her back as she led him further into the house.

"That was the side of himself he gave to everyone else. He didn't have any of that left over when it came to his daughters." She was still a little bitter with her father sometimes. Almost losing him had brought things into perspective though. She went through the house checking things and making sure it was ready for his arrival.

"I couldn't imagine growing up in a place like this. My daddy was a groom for the horses and we lived in a little house on the property. I know it says in the good book that we are all equal in the eyes of God on judgment day. But don't here I say that rich is better than poor." He threw out.

Rayna walked into the dressing room of her father's bedroom. She was surprised to find newspaper clippings and a gold copy of her first album hanging on the walls. "That man he even has to take credit for things that I did on my own."

Luke turned her around in his arms and wrapped them around her waist. "I think that he's proud of his daughter even if he can't say it." He pecked her lips.

"Maybe you're right. With him I don't know sometimes." She laid her head on his shoulder.

* * *

Deacon walked in the kitchen door of Rayna's house with Maddie.

"Bye, dad, good luck on tour." Maddie hugged him tightly.

Deacon kissed the top of her head. "I will, you behave. You call me anytime you want to. You have Scarlett's number in case you need her for anything while I'm gone. I love you."

"I love you too." Maddie said before she went off to her room.

"She in a better mood?" Rayna asked him from the other side of the counter.

"I think so we talked and that seemed to help." He shoved his hands in his pockets not sure what else to say.

"Good, that's good." She stepped out from behind the counter and put her hand on his shoulder. "You be careful out there on the road. That little girl loves you so much and she wouldn't be able to stand it if something happened to you. I wouldn't be able to live with it either."

"I'll be careful. I won't do anything stupid. I'm not going to do anything that will keep me from coming home to her." He promised. He relaxed underneath her touch.

"Don't forget to focus on your sobriety there is a lot of temptation out there. I don't want you to have a slip. Make up your own meetings if you have to. Or call me and I will talk you down." She stared him in the eyes.

"I'm not gonna slip. The last thing I want is my daughter asking herself why she wasn't enough to keep me sober." He stared back into her eyes.

She put her hand on his cheek. "You were right I don't know what I want. Maybe being away from both of you for a little while is what I need to be able to figure it out."

"We both know that if he hadn't been hurt you and I would be together right now. That one night of songwriting between us led to a hell of a lot more." He tilted her chin up and brushed a strand of hair out of her face. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him so passionately that it scared her.

Deacon pulled away first no matter how badly he didn't want to. He wasn't going to let her have her cake and eat it too. He wanted her to choose him for once. "You let me know when you're ready for me to fight for you. Until then I can't do this. You have to pick me for once." He walked out the door while he could still control himself.

Rayna stood there trembling for a moment. She was panting so heavily she was afraid she was going to hyperventilate. "Damn you, Deacon Claybourne, only you make me feel this way." She whispered to herself. She took a deep breath to regain control and then she went upstairs in search of her daughters.

She found both girls laying out across Maddie's bed. "Girls, I have something that I need to talk to you about." She stood in the doorway.

"Why bother? You're just going to do what you want anyway." Maddie griped.

"Maddie, why don't you just tell me what's bothering you? I can't help you unless I know what the problem is." Rayna sighed deeply.

"Not like you care anyway." Maddie mumbled underneath her breath.

Rayna glared at her, but chose to ignore the remark. "Luke and I set a date for a wedding. We are getting married the weekend before the CMAs."

"That soon, mom?" Daphne asked.

"No way, that's not fair. I'm supposed to go up to the cabin with dad that weekend and go fishing. I'm not going to get to spend a whole lot of time with him either. Luke wouldn't just let him out of that stupid tour." Maddie replied.

"Well, no one ran that by me." Rayna rubbed her forehead.

"Now you know how that feels. Luke proposed to you in front of fifty thousand people without even warning us about it first. How do you think we felt? I tell you what it felt about as good as dad asking Peggy to marry him behind our backs." Maddie was building up steam.

"Maddie, no one ever meant for you two to feel that way. It's not something that I had control over. If I did I would have talked it over with the two of you first." Rayna did genuinely feel bad about that. Those two girls had been through so much over the last year. First she and Teddy had divorced, then Maddie had found out Deacon was her father, and Teddy had married Peggy.

"Like you talked over saying no to dad's proposal? I don't know how you could say no to him." Maddie finally dropped the bombshell she'd been holding back.

"Mom, how could you say no to Deacon? Do you know that he told me I'm his family too and he never makes me feel left out?" Daphne's eyes got big.

Rayna ran her hands over her face. She was going to kill Deacon when she got her hands on him. Actually knowing him as well as she did that wasn't something he would have said on purpose. She couldn't be that mad at him. "Deacon and I it's just too complicated and I do love Luke." Maybe if she kept repeating that over and over on a loop she would start to believe it. If she couldn't explain her choice to herself there was no way she could explain it to her daughters.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I know it may seem kind of slow now, but I promise you I have some good stuff in store. I have to get Luke out of the picture before I throw other characters' storylines in there. It won't take too long I promise. I will wrap this up in a couple more chapters and then the real fun begins. I also know that some of you are looking forward to learning the rest of what happened between Rayna and Deacon it's coming at the right time just be patient. Until next time please review.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is Something Bad by Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood.

* * *

Chapter 3

"Rayna, are we really having this conversation again?" Luke paced back and forth on the stage that had been set up in the arena. The last couple of weeks things had seemed to be going better between them.

"Luke, I'm just saying that the girls are really upset about this and we may need to push the wedding back to give them time to adjust." Rayna's voice came from the other side of the phone.

"They are kids and they will adjust to it better once it's a reality rather than an abstract thought." Luke paused to sign something that a roadie put in front of his face.

"I know that. This is just another huge change for them. They've had a lot of those lately and it's my fault, but I just don't want them to be miserable." She tried to reason with him.

"Do you care about what I think at all?" He asked her.

"Of course I care about what you think and what you want. I was just saying that they are upset. Of course it didn't help matters that Deacon told Maddie he proposed. I was still getting the cold shoulder over that one when I left." She mumbled into the phone.

"This again? Of course it's this again there is always something with you two. Some things never change. It doesn't matter how much time passes or who you're with it'll always be Deacon." He raged.

"This has nothing to do with him. This has to do with my girls. I don't care what I am to you I'm their mother and that comes first. They come before me so of course they come before you." She gave back just as good as she got.

"I'll tell you what. You decide what you want and then you can call me back." He hung up the phone before she could say anything else.

"You would think that he would realize that the rest of us have to do sound check too." Will commented to the rest of the musicians standing to the side of the stage waiting.

"That's the beauty of being of the boss, Will, you get to stand on the stage on the phone while everyone else waits to do sound check." Deacon drummed his fist against a speaker. He checked his watch. He needed to done with his sound check in time to have his daily call with Maddie. Today he had a surprise for her and he didn't want to miss her call.

Luke finally stormed off the stage and started walking past them. He stopped to glare at Deacon. "You trying to poison the well between me and your daughter? I popped you one in the mouth so you'd learn to keep it shut. Do I need to do it again?"

"She deserved to know the truth. Anything that is said between me and my daughter is none of your fuckin' business. I'll say what I want to say to her. If it's something her momma has a problem with she'll be the one to tell me not you. I don't take orders from anyone when it comes to my child." Deacon's voice was dangerously low. The one thing he wouldn't stand for was anyone telling him what he could and couldn't do or say when it came to Maddie. That's what had finally spurred him into gear and made him seek to gain his rights to her. People had been making his decisions where she was concerned for far too long.

"That's real nice company you keep." Luke turned to Pam one of his backup singers. He stalked off before he could hear her answer.

Pam was a middle aged woman with bleach blonde hair. She and Deacon had struck up a friendship of sorts since she joined the tour.

"Will, you can go on and take the stage first I have a couple calls to make." Deacon pulled his phone out and walked away from the crowd of people.

The first number he dialed was Maddie's. "Hey, baby girl, it's daddy. Listen I may be doing sound check when you call today, so if I don't answer I will try to call you back before I go on stage. If not I'll call you after I have a surprise for you. I love you and I'll talk to you later." He left a message on her voicemail.

He took a deep breath before he made his next call. He had to steel his nerves for this. He dialed the number and let it ring.

"What do you want?" Rayna's voice sounded snippy and clipped from the other end of the line.

"Relax it's Freakin' Deacon not Wheels up." Deacon chuckled. He leaned up against the wall casually.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to bite your head off. I guess you know I'm fighting with him." He could hear the strain in her voice.

"I do know; he was standing in the middle of the stage while the rest of us waited to do our sound check. Anyway I just thought that you might need a friend to talk to. I really didn't appreciate the way that he was screaming at you in front of other people." He'd changed his mind at the last second. He was going to tell her about what Luke had said to him about Maddie, but he'd heard her voice and he knew she needed someone to lean on rather than another person to bitch at her. Once upon a time he would have started raging at her the minute she answered the phone, but he was trying to prove to her that he was truly a changed man.

"That's real sweet of you, Deacon, but you didn't have to do that. I know that you're not very happy with me either. This is just a mess and I don't know how I let it happen." She sighed loudly.

"I know that I'm not thrilled with you right now, but I still love you and you're still my friend. Most importantly you're the mother of my child. And the best thing I can do for her is get along well with you. So if you need a shoulder to lean on I'm here." That could have been the most mature thing that had ever left his mouth.

"Deacon Claybourne, listen to you sounding like a grown up instead of a hothead. I like this side of you. I always knew you had it in you. Shouldn't you be doing sound check right now?" He could imagine the smile in her voice when she spoke.

"No, I let Will go first. I wanted to call and check up on you. And well I needed to let you know that I'm still on the wagon and I haven't done anything stupid to get myself hurt as promised." He teased her lightly.

"Good, I'm really glad you called. And I appreciate you being concerned about me, but I need to get going I have things to do and I'm sure you do too. I'll talk to you later." She laughed at him.

"I'll talk to you later, Ray." He hung up the phone with a smile on his face.

Hours later Deacon watched in disgust as Rayna joined Luke onstage. Apparently she had dropped whatever she was in the middle of to come pacify him. He rolled his eyes as Luke had his band start up the song he'd written for Rayna. He didn't have any desire to listen to it and it damn sure wouldn't put him in a better frame of mind. He smiled to himself when he felt his phone buzz in his pocket. It could only be one person calling him.

He excused himself and walked into the tunnel of the venue. He redialed Maddie's number and listened to the phone ring.

"Dad, I'm glad I caught you we've been playing phone tag all day." Maddie's excited voice reached his ear.

"I'm glad to finally have you on the phone too. So, I've got a surprise for you. I've got a free day coming up Friday and I thought you could play hooky from school and come join me in Chicago and then I can put you on a plane in St. Louis Sunday night after my show and you'll be home in plenty of time for school Monday." There was a smile on his face just from hearing her voice.

"What? No way! Of course I'd love to come hang out with you." She squealed.

Deacon took the phone away from his ear with a chuckle. "I will take that as a yes and I will see you Friday."

"I'll see you then. I love you, dad." She replied.

"I love you to, baby girl." He hung up his phone and stuffed it back in his pocket.

" _She likes to sleep naked with me."_ Luke sang up on the stage.

Deacon hoped beyond all hope that he didn't just hear him sing that line. He may have thought it was cute, but it wasn't. Rayna had two children who listened to the radio religiously and that was just not ok at all. He took it for what it was though. Luke catered to the beer, pickup trucks, and girls in cutoffs crowd he shouldn't have expected anything less. He was a recovering alcoholic he had no right to take the moral high ground over anyone. To him though that just wasn't how you expressed love and respect to the woman you loved. There was no secret who that song was about and giving away the details of their love life that graphically was disrespectful.

* * *

"Darlin, I sure am glad that you decided to show up tonight. I can't tell you what that means to me." Luke and Rayna were back in his hotel room after the concert.

"Like I said I didn't like the way that phone conversation ended. If you don't want me thinking about Deacon or making comparisons between the two of you stop acting the way he did when he was on a bender. That hanging the phone up in my ear and throwing a temper tantrum was classic drunk Deacon behavior." Rayna delivered a verbal smack down. She didn't want to fight with him, but she didn't want him to think that she was going to take his bullshit either.

"Speaking of Deacon do you know what he said to me earlier? He told me that what goes on between him and Maddie was none of my fuckin' business. Just because I asked him if he was trying to poison the well between me and his daughter." He scoffed.

"Oh, Luke, damn it. Tell me that you didn't. Deacon is very touchy with people telling him what to do when it comes to Maddie and rightly so. I'm begging you to tread lightly when it comes to that. When Teddy told him that he couldn't see Maddie because her grades had slipped he took us to court to get his rights to her." She pinched the bridge of her nose. This was turning into a disaster.

"I still say that you should have just told me from the beginning that Deacon was her father." He pouted further. To him that said she didn't trust him enough to tell him that big things.

"Luke, we hadn't even been together that long. That didn't miraculously give you the right to know something that I'd kept secret for thirteen years. I didn't tell her father that he was her father for years you certainly didn't have the right to know that right away." She raged at him.

"You're right, I'm sorry. I just love you so much and I have a sore spot when it comes to him. Can we just stop talkin' bout Deacon?" He begged.

"We can absolutely stop talking about Deacon." She started kissing on him. She had to at least make an effort here. "So, I got to thinking and I moved some things around. We are both going to be in town the week before Christmas on break from our tours and I thought we could get married then at your ranch. When we go back out on tour we go together and we call it the honeymoon tour. What do you think?"

"I think that's a damn fine idea. And that song wasn't the only surprise I had for your tonight." He unbuttoned his shirt sleeve and rolled it up to his elbow. On his forearm was a new tattoo that said Rayna with an anchor and chain wrapped around it.

She smiled, kissed him deeply, and began to unbutton his shirt.

* * *

Deacon woke up Friday morning to a buzzing on his bedside table his hand searched around blindly until it landed on his phone. "Hello," He answered sleepily.

"Dad, did I wake you?" Maddie asked him.

"It's ok, what's up, baby girl?" He sat up in bed in order to rouse himself a little bit.

"I know that I'm supposed to come spend the weekend with you, but Luke called this morning. He and mom are filming a commercial today and he wants to take us with him to surprise her. I just I don't know what to do." She told him.

"Listen to me, you go have a nice visit with your momma. I know how much you miss her and how much she misses you. You and I will reschedule for another weekend. Her schedule is packed and she doesn't have as much free time as I do." He didn't want to make this difficult on her at all.

"Thanks, dad, you're the best. Go back to sleep, I love you." She chirped.

"I love you too, see you soon." He hung up the phone and snuggled back under the covers when there was a knock at his door. He shuffled out of bed and answered it. "Pam, it's what do you want?" He groaned.

"It's only early if you haven't gone to bed yet in which case it's late. You won't have sex with me because you're so hung up on Queen Perfect therefore I'm going to order room service on your tab and force you to watch reality TV in exchange for listening to you pine for Rayna Jaymes." Pam walked into the hotel room and laid down on his bed.

He crawled back into his bed. "I'm going back to bed. And I do things for you in exchange for these therapy sessions. I bought a motorcycle and I let you ride on it with me. Right now though I'm goin' back to sleep you have the TV until I wake up and then there is a western marathon with my name on it."

"Don't you have to get up in time to get Maddie from the airport? That's all you've been talking about for days." She turned on the TV and made herself comfortable.

"There's been a change of plans with that. Wheeler decided he needed to take the girls and surprise Rayna with a visit from him. I hate to be a suspicious fuck, but it sounds like his way of sticking it to me." He buried his head underneath his pillow.

"Go back to sleep. Things will seem better when you aren't tired." She lifted the pillow off his face and kissed his forehead. No matter what she did to try to seduce him he would have no part of it. So she decided they were better off as friends. She didn't need a man with his emotional hang ups anyway.

Deacon drifted back to sleep quickly. He woke a couple of hours later to the sound of Pam typing on her phone. "What the hell you doin' over there?" He had one eye open.

"Checking Twitter before you make me suffer through hours of mind numbing westerns." She showed him her phone.

He glanced at briefly, but then he grabbed her hand to take a closer look. Luke had posted a picture of himself, Rayna, Maddie, Daphne, and Colt. The caption read 'My New Family' that's when he knew for sure that Luke had done this to spite him. "Oh, that no good son of a bitch."

He jumped out of bed and threw his clothes on. He grabbed the new leather motorcycle jacket he had just bought and put it on. He didn't have any luggage with him. Everything he needed was down on the tour bus. He slipped his feet into his boots.

"Where are you going?" Pam asked him.

"I'm going out for a ride to clear my head. I'll be back later. I just need to be alone right now. At this moment I want a drink and I want to put my fist through a wall. I need to go do something where I don't have that option." He replied. He pocketed his phone, wallet and keys before he stepped out the door without another word.

* * *

Rayna lounged in her hotel room after spending most of the day with Luke and their kids. All things considered they'd had a nice day. Maddie had even managed to keep her attitude in check for a change. Her phone rang and shattered her peace and quiet.

"Hello," She answered.

"Ms. Jaymes," A voice on the other side of the line said.

"Yes," She replied.

"This is Dr. Miller from the University of Chicago Medical Center. I'm calling because we have Deacon Claybourne in our ER. He has you down as his emergency contact and we can't release him unless there is someone who can drive him home." The doctor informed her.

"I'm in Indianapolis right now, but I can be there within the hour. I'll charter a flight and be right there." Rayna hung up the phone and threw some clothes on. She prayed that Deacon was ok because he wasn't going to be when she got her hands on him.

A little over an hour later she walked into the hospital. A nurse directed her to the room where Deacon was waiting for her. She gasped when she saw him.

He sat on the bed with his shirt off. His left shoulder and the left side of his rib cage were one massive purple bruise. His left arm was in a sling. "Don't go soundin' like that. It looks worse than it actually is."

"Deacon, what happened? You promised me that you were gonna be careful." Seeing him like that killed her.

"I uh, well I bought a motorcycle. I went for a drive to clear my head today, because I wanted a drink worse than I've wanted one in a long time. I got sideswiped by a car. I've got a broken collarbone and some cracked ribs. I got extremely lucky that it wasn't much worse." He braced himself for the lecture that was sure to ensue.

"I always told you that you had no business owning a motorcycle." She arched her eyebrow at him. "Care to tell me why you needed to clear your head? I told you to call me if you felt like you needed a drink and I would talk you down."

"You were busy with the girls today I didn't wanna disturb you. It's stupid. It was just I had plans with Maddie for this weekend. I talked about it all week I was so excited to show her off to the band. She called this morning to cancel on me and that was fine I'll have more opportunities for her to tag along I'm not as busy as you are. Well I saw that picture that Luke put on Twitter and I got this stupidly jealous thought in my head that he concocted this surprise trip just to put me in my place." He didn't hold his feelings back this time.

"Maddie had mentioned to me that she had other plans but Luke insisted that she come. I didn't know that you were her other plans. Had I known that I would have put her on a plane to you. Deacon, I'm so sorry. He's so damn jealous when it comes to you that he loses his good sense. There's no doubt in my mind that he did what you think he did and I will talk to him about it." She apologized to him. When she got through with Luke she was going to make him regret this childish decision.

"It's alright, you didn't do it. I told her it was ok to go surprise you it was the caption that he put under that picture that got to me. Anyway, I'll have a lot more time to spend with her now. I'm out for at least four weeks with this busted wing of mine." He gave her an easy grin.

"I'll talk to him and tell him about playing nicely with you again." She put a gentle hand on his cheek and stared deeply into his eyes.

"Thank you," He stared back into her eyes and he saw something there that hadn't been there before. That and the way she stood so close to him was her way of letting him know that it was time for him to fight for her. She didn't have to say it he could sense it.

"You don't have to thank me. I will always be here for you." She kissed the top of his head gently careful not to jostle him.

* * *

Two Weeks Later

"Thank you for bringing these up for me." Rayna tipped the bellhop and took a vase of Irises from him.

"Wow, look at you. Another day another dozen flowers. You're up to a dozen, dozen now." Sadie commented from where she sat on the bed. The two of them had grown close since she'd signed with Highway 65 and they'd been on tour together.

"That makes twelve dozen flowers in the last twelve days." Rayna set the flowers on the dresser.

"Still have no clue who they are from?" Sadie asked her.

The great mystery behind the flowers was that as of yet they'd been unable to figure out who'd sent them. At first Rayna had been convinced it was Luke, because she'd read him the riot act for that stunt he'd pulled with Deacon and Maddie. When she asked him about it he said that it wasn't him.

"No, I have no clue who they are from." Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"It's a different dozen flowers everyday with the exception of yesterday they have never repeated before. I happen to know that irises are the state flower of Tennessee and magnolias are the state flower of Mississippi and Louisiana." Sadie supplied helpfully.

"I'm not going to ask how you know that off the top of your head, but you may be on to something. Do you happen to know any of the others?" Rayna asked. This mystery was either weird or cute she couldn't decide which.

"Not off the top of my head but I looked them up when it became apparent that Luke didn't send them. So in order rose laevigata is Georgia, orange blossom is Florida, flowering dogwood is North Carolina. Magnolia is Louisiana, goldenrod is Kentucky, rose tree is West Virginia. Camellia is Alabama, apple blossom is Arkansas, Oklahoma rose is Oklahoma, and bluebonnet is Texas." Sadie listed off for her.

"Or Atlanta, Tampa, Charlotte, Baton Rouge, Louisville, Wheeling, Birmingham, Little Rock, Oklahoma City, and Galveston." Rayna replied with a list of cities.

"How'd you know that? Do you know who they are from?" Sadie questioned excitedly.

"Those cities I just listed were the first ten stops on the first tour that Deacon and I ever played together in little dive bars. The last two represent Nashville and Natchez. They are either from some super fan or…" Rayna didn't get to finish her sentence because a knock on the door cut her off. She opened the door to find Deacon on the other side holding a bouquet of a dozen yellow roses in his hand. His guitar bag hung from his right shoulder. "Deacon," She finished her sentence.

"And last but not least San Antonio. From the first time we played the state fair there. You're a performer I couldn't send you just a dozen bouquets. We are superstitious bunch." A huge grin grew on his face.

"What are you doing here? You're not supposed to be here until later." Rayna hugged him gently so she didn't hurt him.

"I wanted to come early and surprise you. Did you like all the flowers?" He asked hopefully. This was his first step in fighting for her. It was one of the little things that he didn't really do for her when they were together because he was too drunk.

"I loved them and that was very clever of you. I was starting to think I had a stalker. Are you sure that you feel up to this tonight?" Rayna looked at him concerned. They were playing Knoxville tonight and she had invited him to play with them if he was feeling up to it.

"I'm up for it. I've been resting up and doing everything that I'm supposed to. You can call Scarlett and check up if you don't believe me." He laughed.

"Come on in, I'll believe you until I have proof that you haven't been behaving." Rayna took the flowers and guitar from him and sat them down. "Deacon Claybourne, this is Sadie Stone my newest artist. Sadie Stone, this is Deacon Claybourne my oldest friend and my oldest daughter's father." She introduced them.

Deacon shook Sadie's hand. "It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too. I've heard so much about you from Rayna. And I've listened to every song you two ever made together. I even have your solo album." Sadie gushed a little star struck.

"This mighty kind of you." Deacon smiled mischievously. "Say, I have an idea. If you ladies have a little time to kill. I just so happen to have this song I'm not using right now that I think would work great for you if you wanted to play it tonight."

"And you just so happened to bring it with you?" Rayna grinned at him.

"You know me, I'm always prepared." He shrugged with a grin.

Sadie felt like she was watching an intimate moment between the two of them and she looked away.

Rayna came back on stage for her encore to the roar of thousands of fans. "If ya'll don't mind we aren't quite ready to close it down yet. We still have a few more songs left in us." She smiled as the cheers got louder. "I'm gonna need some help for this next one. Please help me welcome back to the stage Ms. Sadie Stone." She waited for the cheers to die down after Sadie came out. "And an old, dear friend of mine for the first time since his accident. Mr. Deacon Claybourne." The crowd went wild on that one. They had to wait a full minute before they could launch into the song that Deacon had written.

" _Stand on the bar, stomp your feet, start clapping. Got a real good feeling something bad about to happen. Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh."_ Rayna, Sadie, and Deacon sang to open the song.

" _Pulled up to the church but I got so nervous had to back it on up, couldn't make it to the service. Grabbed all the cash underneath my mattress got a real good feelin' something bad about to happen."_ Sadie took the first verse.

" _Ran into a girl in a pretty white dress rolled down a window, where you heading to next? Said I'm heading to the bar with my money out the mattress. Got a real good feeling something bad about to happen."_ Rayna covered the next verse.

" _Stand on the bar stomp your feet start clapping. Got a real good feeling something bad about to happen. The drinks keep coming throw my head back laughing wake up in the morning don't know what happened. Whoa, something bad. Whoa, something bad."_ Deacon, Rayna, and Sadie sang together again.

" _Now me and that girl that I met on the street were rolling down the road down to New Orleans. Got full tank of gas and the money out the mattress. Got a real good feeling something bad about to happen."_ Rayna danced around the stage.

" _Bout to tear it up down in New Orleans. Just like the real life Thelma and Louise. If the cops catch up they're gonna call it kidnapping. Got a real good feeling something bad about to happen."_ Sadie too moved around the stage.

" _Stand on the bar stomp your feet start clapping. Got a real good feeling something bad about to happen. The drinks keep coming throw my head back laughing wake up in the morning don't know what happened. Whoa, something bad. Whoa, something bad."_ The three sang in unison again.

Deacon stepped to the forefront of the stage and stood back to back with Rayna while he played his guitar solo.

" _Stand on the bar stomp your feet start clapping. Got a real good feeling something bad about to happen. The drinks keep coming throw my head back laughing wake up in the morning don't know what happened. Whoa, something bad. Whoa, something bad."_ They closed out the song together. It was safe to say that Rayna and Deacon had once again struck country music gold.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. We are getting really close to the good stuff. Just want to put my feelers out and see how many of you want to see Rayna and Deacon's night together as a small flashback and how many of you want an actual chapter? Don't worry this Luke stuff is about wrapped up. I know he is kinda a jackass right now, but I plan to try to redeem him. Until next time please review.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Thank you all so much for all your kind reviews.

* * *

Chapter 4

Deacon and Rayna walked to her dressing room together after the show. They both had huge grins on their faces. Being back on that stage together again had been incredible. After debuting their new song they had launched into Postcard from Mexico to the delight of the crowd.

"Wow, that was insane, Ray. I forgot what it's like being up there on that stage with you. The energy and excitement basically everything I haven't felt on this tour." He laughed. He felt more alive than he had since right before he'd found out he was Maddie's father.

"I know, thank you so much for doing this for me, Deacon." She threw her arms around him.

Her touch soothed his battered body and ignited a spark in him he'd thought had gone out when she chose Luke.

That one touch was all it took and they were on each other. He tangled his hand in her hair and she let her hands roam the muscles of his broad back as they kissed. He pulled on her lip seductively and she shoved her tongue into his mouth. They broke apart panting when there was a knock on the door.

She cleaned her lipstick off of his mouth before she called out. "Come in!"

Bucky walked in holding his hand over the mouthpiece of his cellphone. "Deacon, Scarlett is on the phone for you. She said it's important or she wouldn't have called." With just one look he knew what was going on between Deacon and Rayna, but he chose not to say anything. He wasn't stupid Rayna was at her happiest when she was with Deacon. From her recent change in attitude he could tell that she had been talking to him more.

"Thanks, Buck," Deacon took the phone from him and put it to his ear. "Scarlett, what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry to worry you. Nothing is really wrong, but you need to come home. Maddie and Colt threw a party at Rayna's house that got out of control. Daphne called me crying hysterically because she was scared and couldn't get ahold of you or Teddy. Gunnar, Avery, and I managed to break it up without any problem." Scarlett explained to her uncle.

"Maddie did what? Where the hell is Teddy? Is Daphne ok? Can you please put her on?" Deacon rolled his left shoulder and winced in pain. There was some shuffling as the phone was passed around.

Rayna started changing clothes as soon as she heard her daughters' names. "Bucky, call the airport and have them get a plane ready for us."

"You got it, Ray. I'll take care of everything. Don't worry about it. You just go take care of those girls." Bucky assured her. He grabbed a phone from a staffer and made the arrangements.

"Deacon, where are you? I can't get my dad on the phone and it was really scary here. I don't mean to be any trouble, but I didn't know who else to call." Daphne sniffled.

"Listen to me, Squirt, I'm gonna be home in maybe an hour and a half tops. It's no problem at all this is exactly why we gave you Scarlett's number in case there was ever anything you needed. She is gonna stay with you until I get there. I will be there really soon. Put Scarlett back on for me." Deacon spoke to her gently.

"Ok, I'll see you soon." Daphne sniffled again. Again there was a rustling noise as the phone was passed back to Scarlett.

"Deacon, just take your time getting here. Everything is fine now. Get here as soon as you can I have nothing else to do tonight." Scarlett tried to calm her uncle down.

"I'm getting on a plane soon. Thanks for being there for them, sweetie." Deacon hung up the phone. He clenched and unclenched his fist a couple of times. His jaw was set in a hard line.

"Deacon, what is it?" Rayna asked. She had changed into a pair of jeans and a loose blouse while he was on the phone.

"That Wheeler kid has managed to drag our daughter into trouble once again. They had a huge party at your house. Daphne got scared and called Scarlett when she couldn't get ahold of Teddy. Scarlett brought Gunnar and Avery over and they took care of getting everyone out of the house." Deacon seethed. He handed Bucky his phone back.

"Where is Teddy? Or my sister? I'm coming with you. I'll call Luke on the way. There is no way that I'm letting you handle this alone with as pissed off as you are right now." Rayna took his hand to calm him down.

"That's a good idea." Deacon agreed.

"Your sister had a meeting with some vendors in Memphis and she was staying overnight. I've got you two a plane fueled up and ready to go. There's a car waiting for you outside." Bucky reported.

"Thanks, Buck, I really appreciate you." Rayna sighed.

"Just let me know how me know how things go and if I'm going to have to spin this to the media." Bucky replied.

* * *

"Scarlett, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind when you invited me over here." Avery threw plastic cups and empty beer cans into a trash bag. He found an unopened beer and claimed it for himself. He'd been a mess since his breakup with Juliette. He drank from the beer and made a face. "Oh God, cheap beer still tastes just as bad as it did when I was this age." That didn't stop him from finishing the whole thing.

"Avery, I said I had to go help my cousins out of a mess. What else did you expect? And that's gross because it's warm and teenagers don't care as long as it gets them drunk." Scarlett was down on her hands and knees scrubbing a spot off the carpet. "Gunnar, how are things going in there?"

"Daphne and I have just about got the kitchen clean. It seemed to be the least affected area. This wasn't a house party it was a rave. We chased like two hundred kids out of here." Gunnar replied.

"There were a lot of people in here and they were being loud and rude." Daphne supplied.

Avery made a face and fought the urge to gag. He gestured for Scarlett to get Daphne out of the room.

"Daphne, why don't you go upstairs and make sure that Maddie and Colt are both still where we left them. Go on and get ready for bed while you're at it." Scarlett smiled at her.

"Ok, Scarlett." Daphne scurried off up the stairs.

"Why'd you run the munchkin off?" Gunnar asked with a confused look on his face.

"Because there is a used condom on the bottom of my shoe. What the hell were these kids doing here? This is savage." Avery used a paper towel to remove the condom from his shoe.

"They are like barbarians with raging hormones. I think we've got it as clean as we can for right now. I think that stain will come out of that carpet." Scarlett got up off the floor.

"We've gotten it clean enough anyway." Gunnar agreed.

"Ya'll didn't have to clean this mess up. I would have handled that in the morning." Deacon came through the front door with Rayna.

"It was fine it saved us from the two sullen teenagers upstairs that are freezing us out." Scarlett waved off his thanks.

"Thank you for coming, Sweetie. I really appreciate you being here for the girls like this." Rayna hugged her.

"You're welcome it was no trouble at all. I'm more than happy to look after them." Scarlett replied.

"Gunnar, Avery, thank ya'll for comin' and keeping my three girls safe. Go on and get we've got it from here." Deacon thanked the two young men.

"Just to warn you this is the only part of the house that is anything that resembles clean. We did our best." Scarlett waved over her shoulder on her way out the door with the guys.

Rayna pinched the bridge of her nose. "Luke is on his way and I still can't get ahold of Teddy. I wonder where he is."

"It looks pretty bad in here, Ray. I don't even know where to start." Deacon scratched his head at a loss.

"I've seen worse. This right here is what you and Vince could do on your own if you both got good and drunk." She said without thinking.

"We were pretty bad. I'm sorry that we put you through that. I don't think I've ever apologized and I'm apologizing now." He couldn't remember if he'd said sorry to her since he'd been sober.

"It was a long time ago, Deacon. You don't have to apologize to me for the rest of your life." She smiled at him.

"Deacon! You're finally here." Daphne ran and threw her arms around his waist.

"I'm here, Squirt. It's all ok now. Look who else is here." Deacon spun her around to face Rayna.

"Mom!" Daphne rushed into her arms.

"Hi, Sweet Girl, where is your sister?" Rayna hugged her tightly.

"She's upstairs in your room and Colt is in her room. Avery tied a string of beer cans to each door so he could hear them if they tried to escape." Daphne reported.

"He's creative I'll give him that." Deacon chuckled.

"Do you want to go talk to Maddie or do you want me to?" Rayna asked.

"You spend some time with the Squirt. I'll go up and talk to Maddie." Deacon needed to handle this himself.

* * *

Maddie sighed and scooted around her mom's bed and tried hard to make herself comfortable. She couldn't believe how lame this was. The first cool thing she got to do and Daphne had to rat her out.

"Maddie, we need to talk." Deacon walked in without bothering to knock.

"Of course we do." She grumbled and rolled her eyes.

"Maddie, don't give me that attitude tonight. This is not the time for it. Like it or not you screwed up and now I have to be the bad guy. I don't like being the bad guy, but when you leave me with no other choice I have to act like the big bad wolf." He crossed his arms over his chest and winced. After he did it he remembered that he wasn't supposed to be doing that yet.

"So then don't be the bad guy." She countered.

"This is serious, Maddison. I want you to look me in the eye and swear to me that you haven't been drinking." He put his finger under her chin and brought her eyes up to meet his.

"God, dad, no I haven't been drinking." She huffed.

"I'm an alcoholic, Maddie, you could very easily become one too if you aren't careful. I just don't want to see you repeat my mistakes. If I had been sober I could have been your dad from the beginning. Now, you broke our trust. Not only did you put yourself in a dangerous situation you put your sister in the same situation. You swore to me and to Teddy that you could handle watching her for the night while we were both busy. I trusted you to do as you said." He was disappointed in her. He knew that she was responsible for her own actions, but he couldn't help noticing that the poor judgment always came out when Colt was involved.

"I know, I'm sorry." She bowed her head.

"You're grounded for a week. No guitar, no phone, no friends. You go to school and come home. Got it?" He laid down the law.

"I got it." She nodded her head and a tear slid down her cheek.

He pulled her to him with his good arm. "Shh, it's ok, it's gonna be ok. You just made a mistake everybody does it. The important thing is that you learn from it. I only come down on you because I don't want to see anything bad happen to you. I was so worried when Scarlett called Bucky."

"I'm sorry, dad.' She apologized again.

"I know you are. I know." He kissed her head.

* * *

"Daph, you can go on up to bed if you want to. You don't have to stick around down here and help me clean up. I'll make sure that your dad comes up to see you when he gets in." Rayna told her daughter.

"You're not leaving tonight?" Daphne's eyes got wide with excitement.

"No I'm not leaving tonight. I'm gonna stay with my girls." Rayna smiled back at her.

"Ok, I love you, mom." Daphne smiled before running up the stairs.

"Rayna! You here?" Luke called out when he walked through the door.

"In here." Rayna called back to him.

"What the hell happened? Freakin' Deacon fall off the wagon and redecorate for you?" Luke looked around and gave a low whistle. His cheeks were flushed and it wasn't hard to tell that he'd been drinking.

"Not funny, he's right upstairs. Don't be an ass. The kids had one hell of a party here from the looks of it. And it looks like I called you away from one." She commented dryly.

"That's life on the road, darlin' one big party." He shrugged his shoulders.

Deacon came downstairs rubbing his forehead. "Alright, Ray, it's taken care of. She's up there waiting on you." He didn't notice that Luke was in the room.

Luke's eyes darkened when he entered the room. "There's Mr. I'm Too Hurt to be Your Opening Act, but I can Go Play Guitar for My Ex. You told me your doctor said you were supposed to take it easy for four weeks. That video that's plastered all over the internet doesn't look like taking it easy to me."

"That was two songs and I'm paying for it now." Deacon groaned and moved his arm around gingerly.

"If you can do that you can go back out on tour." Luke stared him down.

In the last few months Rayna had saw a side of him that she didn't know existed. She didn't know if this side was the real him or the other side. "Luke, now is not the time for this."

"If just saying if he can go running at your beck and call he can do the job I'm paying him for." Luke didn't know when to stop.

"Deacon, excuse us a minute I need to have a word with him." Rayna pulled him out of the room by his elbow.

"What the fuck, Rayna?" Luke asked once they were in the kitchen.

"Hold on," She opened her cabinet and pulled her checkbook out. She wrote a check and ripped it out before handing it to Luke. "There, I just bought out Deacon's contract. You're releasing him from your tour for medical reasons. Obviously you can't handle working with him and I can't handle this macho posturing bullshit that you do when it comes to him. So, take that and stop pouting."

Luke ripped up the check. "Forget the check you can have him. He's obviously the one you want anyway."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Rayna asked.

"It means he's your damn guitar player and always will be. So he's yours." He may have been drunk, but he was smart enough to walk back what he'd just said.

"Mhmm, just release him. It's better off for everyone that way." She looked at him hard. "Come on, let's go back in there."

"Yeah, you're right, let's go." He took her hand.

Deacon leaned against the back of the couch talking to Teddy when they returned to the room. "You were supposed to be the on call dad tonight, Teddy. Where were you?"

"I know my phone was off because I was in a business meeting. I'll call Scarlett and thank her for taking care of this." Teddy replied. It was easier on the girls if he and Deacon really made an effort to get along. And he didn't want to say where he'd really been.

"I think she ran those kids out of here like they were on fire that's for sure. It could have happened on my watch too. I talked to Maddie about breaking our trust and putting Daphne in that situation." Deacon went on.

Rayna looked between her daughters' fathers. "Who are you two and what have you done with Deacon and Teddy?" She was very impressed not only with how well those two seemed to be getting along, but with how seriously Deacon took his role as Maddie's father.

"We're co-parents we probably won't ever like each other, but we make it work." Teddy informed her.

"We are being adults as best we know how." Deacon agreed.

"I better go upstairs and get that boy of mine." Luke said. "Uh, Deacon, thank your niece for me. And I wanted to tell you not to worry about the rest of the tour just heal up."

"I'll do that, thanks." Deacon snuck a look at Rayna out of the corner of his eye.

Luke went upstairs to collect Colt and left as quickly as he could.

"Rayna, are you keeping the girls tonight?" Teddy asked.

"Yeah, I'll make sure they get to school in the morning I have enough time for that." Rayna replied.

"I'm gonna take off then." Teddy left them alone together.

"You got him to release me from my contract didn't you?" Deacon asked her.

"I did something occurred to me tonight up there on that stage. I need you there is no difference between you and music to me. If I have any shot of making this label work I need you by my side. Juliette is running around doing this movie and I'm the only one making any music right now. Deacon, I know that things are so complicated right now, but I've looked over your contract with Belcourt and I wanna sign you." She knew it would probably be the straw that broke the camel's back with Luke, but she didn't care anymore.

"If you're sure you want me I'd be glad to do it for you." He grinned.

"I'm sure I want you." She smiled back. They both knew that she didn't just mean on her label. "You can start work on an album while you have nothing else to do."

"I can do that." He reached over and took her hand. He was powerless to tell her no they both had always known that.

"Deacon, thank you for being such a good dad. I'm sorry that I took the chance to be one sooner from you." She leaned against him.

"She's my world, Ray. You don't have to apologize for the rest of your life either." He let go of her hand and put his good arm around her.

"What are we gonna do? I am still so in love with you, but I don't know how to get out of the mess I'm in with him." She looked up at him.

"Ray, what are you saying?" He dared to let himself hope that she meant what he thought she meant.

"I choose you, Deacon, I love you and that has never not been true. Let's raise these girls up together and be a family." She said the words he'd wanted to hear for so long.

"That's all I want in this world." He leaned his forehead against hers and kissed her gently. "I have to go, because as much as I want to be here right now and as thrilled as I am to hear you say that you're still with him. We've never cheated before and we aren't gonna start now. Take your time with him I know you have to be smart about it, but I will be waiting for you."

"God help me, Deacon Claybourne, I love you." She pressed her lips to his again.

"I love you too, Rayna Jaymes. I gotta go now or I'm gonna stay and like I said we aren't cheaters. I'll be by in the morning." He pulled himself away from her and left no matter how much they both wanted him to stay he couldn't.

* * *

"Wow, Rayna, I can't believe it. How did you manage two nominations in one category?" Sadie asked on the morning that CMA nominations came out.

Rayna had been nominated for single of the year, female vocalist of the year, album of the year, entertainer of the year, and song of the year by two or more artists for Ball and Chain and Something Bad. "You, Deacon, and I created quite the buzz with our performance. I swear everything I touch with that man turns to gold."

"That's for sure." Sadie agreed with a smile.

"You have nothing to be ashamed of either. Two nominations and you're a brand new artist that's very impressive." Rayna praised her. She sat her champagne glass down and got up to answer the knock on the door. She tipped the messenger and accepted her package.

"What did you get this time? Another of Deacon's crazy packages?" Sadie asked.

Deacon had been sending Rayna silly little packages to remind her of their past together. He sent of her postcards from cities they had played and copies of their old set lists.

"Probably," Rayna opened the package and pulled out a t-shirt from the Bluebird and a note. "You may be a big star now, but to me you'll always be the girl I met at the Bluebird, Deacon." She read the note out loud.

"You two are so supportive of each other." Sadie commented.

"We've been through a lot together. And we have a daughter we are bonded for life." Rayna replied. She couldn't help noticing that Luke hadn't even called to congratulate her.

"I should be going I have a radio interview to get ready for I'll see you before show time." Sadie excused herself from the room.

Rayna went to get something and her head got dizzy and she had to sit down. That was the third time in as many days that had happened. She picked up her phone and called Bucky. "Buck, I need a favor. I need to see a doctor and I need it done on the sly. No one can ever find out about this." She had her suspicions about what was going on with her. She just hoped she was wrong it would only complicate matters.

"Congratulations, Ms. Jaymes, you're pregnant." A concierge doctor told her a half hour later. The doctor had signed a non-disclosure agreement and everything would be kept confidential.

A cold sense of dread gripped Rayna. No, this couldn't be happening not now not like this not with Luke. "Do you know how far along I am?" she asked.

"We will know that in just a minute. I have a portable ultrasound machine if you'll just lay back and pull your shirt up we will get started." The doctor replied.

Rayna did as the doctor instructed. He grabbed the equipment out of his bag and got it set up.

The doctor squirted the gel onto her stomach and began the ultrasound. He studied the picture on the screen for a moment. "Double congratulations are in order, you're sixteen weeks pregnant with twins."

Rayna felt a wave of relief wash over her and tears slipped down her face. "You're sure about that?" she had to be sure.

"I'm positive you're sixteen weeks. I can maybe tell you the sex if you like. It's a little soon, but still possible." The doctor offered.

"No, I'll make an appointment with my regular OB. Is there a way for you to print that out?" Rayna asked.

"Of course I'll do that for you right now." The doctor replied.

"Ray, what do you want me to do about this? How do you want me to handle this? Do you want me to call Luke?" Bucky questioned her after the doctor had gone. She didn't keep secrets from him and she'd asked him to remain in the room for this.

"Bucky, don't do or say anything right now. Please I'm begging you not to call Luke. He's the absolute last person I want to tell." Rayna shook her head.

"What's going on? You have to be honest with me, Ray. I can't protect you if you don't tell me the truth." Bucky took her hand.

"Buck, Luke isn't the father Deacon is. And I can't breathe a word of this to anyone else until I tell him. I owe him that much." Rayna confided in him. It all made sense now. Why she had felt so fatigue and why she seemed to be gaining weight. It was normal that she hadn't noticed she'd been so busy that missing her period didn't even register.

"How sure are you, Ray?" Bucky questioned.

"I'm positive. Luke and I weren't sleeping together sixteen weeks ago. He was off on tour because he said he needed time." Rayna explained.

"How did this happen? I mean I know how it happened it's you and it's Deacon enough said, what I mean is when?" Bucky rambled.

"If you really want to know, I'll tell you, Buck." Rayna opened up.

"I really wanna know." Bucky replied.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Next chapter is a big chapter and I think you are going to like it. Until next time please review.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 5

Sixteen Weeks Earlier

"So, did you want to talk about you and Wheeler?" Deacon leaned back in his chair.

"I don't know what there is to say. He just got all bent out of shape because the first words out of my mouth to him weren't oh and by the way Deacon is Maddie's father. That was her truth to tell and yours it wasn't my place to tell him that. What difference does it make anyway? Whether Teddy is her father or you are?" Rayna went off on a bit of a rant.

"Ray, you have to know that way back when he had a huge thing for you. As long as Teddy was her father I hadn't won." He shrugged.

"When did you grow up and start thinking about things like a rational adult?" She teased him.

"About the time I realized that I have a daughter who needs me to behave like a father should." He grinned back at her.

"Deacon, she is so much like you and you don't even realize it yet. She looks just like you and she has your personality. She infuriates me the way you always have too sometimes." She informed him.

"She damn sure got her talent to play the guitar from me. She didn't get that from you. You play the guitar like it's your job to mangle every tune you try to play." He laughed.

"I'm gonna ignore that comment. So does this new grown up daddy status mean that you no longer eat food out of a can and you can actually cook now?" She arched her eyebrow.

"Hey, don't you forget who used to cook for you all the time. We would have starved if we relied on your cooking skills." He countered.

"I can still order a pizza like nobody's business. You grab your guitar and I'll order the food." She offered.

"It's a plan then." He grabbed his guitar and came back into the room while she was still on the phone with the pizza man.

"Deacon, stop it, no matter how much you want to be you will never be Johnny Cash." She laughed at him a couple of hours later.

He picked up his guitar and did his best Johnny Cash impersonation. "See I do a mean Johnny Cash."

She only laughed harder. This reminded her of how he used to be in the old days before the alcohol had completely twisted him into a man she could no longer recognize. They used to write and joke and laugh together for hours. Of course with them writing always led to something else and at the time that had been just fine by both of them. "I'll tell you what, you can be Johnny Cash if you let me be your June Carter." The words left her mouth innocently enough.

Deacon stopped dead in his tracks and stared her in the eyes. He put his guitar down and took a step towards her.

Rayna moved closer to him and before she knew what she'd done she pressed her lips to his. She kissed him deeply and passionately with such intensity that it scared her a little.

He let his hands wander all over her body as they kissed. He moaned into her mouth when she sucked on his tongue.

She broke the kiss and brought her hands to the hem of his shirt. She pulled it over his head and started kissing on his neck.

He returned the favor by unbuttoning her shirt and tossing it aside. He kissed from her neck down to her chest. He unclasped her bra and pushed it off of her shoulders. "Ray, are you sure?" His voice was barely above a whisper.

"Don't think, don't talk, just do what feels right." She mumbled against his lips. She kissed him to keep him quiet. She moaned when he unbuttoned her jeans and slid his hand down her panties. His talented fingers strummed her just as skillfully as they did the strings of his guitar.

He continued to ghost his fingers across her sex for a moment with a grin on his face. He could see the frustration mingled with the desire on her face. He was touching her just not enough or the way she wanted. "Not here," He picked her up and carried her to his bedroom with her long legs wrapped around his waist.

He tossed her on his bed gently. He kicked his boots off and stripped out of his boxers and jeans.

She stared up at him a look of wanton desire on her face. She was seeing him naked for the first time in months and still he was just as attractive as the first time she'd seen him like this.

He climbed on top of her and started kissing down her body. He teased both of her nipples to hard points with the tip of his tongue. He left a trail of kisses from her chest down to her bellybutton. He paused to swirl his tongue around her bellybutton before continuing his trek. He pulled her jeans down her toned legs. He kissed up one leg and then the other. He took the top of her panties between his teeth and pulled them down.

She lay there writhing in ecstasy. He hadn't even really touched her yet and already she was on the brink. He'd always had this kind of power over her and he always would.

He crawled back up her body and pinned her arms over her head. He used his knee to spread her legs and he sank into her silky depths with a moan.

Her body quivered underneath his as she felt him fill her for the first time in a long time. It had never felt this way with any other man before and she doubted any other man could ever make her feel this way.

He stroked in and out of her deeply like he was trying to touch her very soul. They fit together perfectly like two pieces of the same puzzle. "I love you," he whispered against her lips.

"I love you too," She whispered back. She freed her hands from his grasp and wrapped her arms around his muscular back. She raked her fingernails up and down his back.

He sucked and nibbled on her neck as he made love to her. He was approaching the point of no return and he could feel that she was right on the edge too.

They reached their orgasms together in blinding hot fury of passion. They lay there and just held each other for a long time before gathering their strength for round two. They made love until the morning sun spilled in through the windows at which point they finally collapsed together spent and basking in the afterglow of amazing sex.

* * *

Present Day

"In other words you and Deacon did what you do best together?" Bucky questioned after Rayna had finished her tale.

"Pretty much, I don't know what I'm going to do. I just know that there is no way I can marry Luke. I can't put Deacon through that again and I don't want to." Rayna shrugged.

"Ray, I say this as one of your oldest friends and as someone who loves you. You have to be careful how you handle this thing with Luke. It has the potential to destroy your career. Lucky for you the fans have always loved you and Deacon together. We just have to spin this in a way that doesn't make it look like you cheated on Luke or you went straight from him to Deacon." He advised her.

"I know, Buck, I know. It's so damn complicated. Through this is Deacon and me things have always been complicated." She sighed.

"Are you gonna tell Deacon? This is another piece of advice from a friend. Be careful I know how much you love Deacon and how much he loves you, but you've both hurt each other before." He went on.

"I'm gonna tell Deacon. I'm just not gonna tell him right away. If I do the rational part of his brain is gonna shut down and he's gonna demand that I leave Luke right this second. That wouldn't be wise this close to the CMAs and not because I'm worried about losing some award, but because of what it would do to my image." She buried her face in her hands.

"It's ok, Ray, you don't have to decide anything right now." He rubbed her back soothingly. "So, are we happy about this?"

She took her hands away from her face and nodded her head slowly. A small smile appeared. "Very shocked, but very happy. I thought I was done after Daphne. It just comes as a big surprise."

"You need to let me have a quiet word with your stylist. If you're not gonna tell Luke and you're not gonna tell Deacon then we need to hide this as best we can. I don't want rumors to start running wild that you're pregnant with Luke's baby when Deacon's the father." He tried to talk some sense into her.

"Make sure that it's a very quiet word, Bucky. And it's babies not baby." She was still trying to wrap her head around the fact that Deacon and her were going to be the parents of twins. She picked up the ultrasound picture and smiled.

"I'll be discreet I always am that's what you pay me for. You just need to come up with a way to hide this from Luke if you don't want him to know." He advised her.

"That won't be a problem the only time we will be together is the weekend and the Monday and Tuesday before the CMAs. I'll find a way to hide it from him. You just leave that up to me." She assured him.

"I may have a way to help with that. I got a call from Rolling Stone just before you called me. They had an artist drop out at the last minute and they want to feature you on the cover. The only time they can do it is right before the CMAs when you'll be in town. If there's another person lurking around you won't have to be alone with him as much." He suggested to her.

"Do it, Buck, I need all the help I can get." She ordered.

"I'll make the call as soon as I finish up here. Ray, you've already had a big day and you still have a show to do tonight. So, what can I get you? You've got to eat and you need to rest as much as possible. Let me take the extra pressure off of you." He offered helpfully.

"I'll order breakfast from room service. I don't need you to fuss over me." She looked down at her ringing phone and saw that Luke was finally calling. "I should take this."

"Congratulations, Ray, you've had a really good day I'm happy for you and Deacon." He waved as he walked out of the room.

"Hello," She picked up the phone as soon as he left.

"Hey, darlin', I was just callin' to congratulate ya and wish ya luck. Up against me in all those categories you're gonna need it." Luke boasted.

"I think that I will give you a run for your money, so you better watch out." She countered. Now that she had her mind set on leaving him everything he did and said grated on her nerves. Well that could actually just be her pregnancy hormones.

"We really are the king and queen of country music and we are about to build us an empire, little lady. I can't believe I won't be able to see ya for another three weeks. It's gonna be hell." He replied.

She rolled her eyes at him. "It'll go faster than think." She fought the urge to sigh. The time would fly by because she was dreading it.

"Alright, I gotta get back to work. I will talk to you later." he said finally.

"I'll talk to you later." She hung up the phone before he could say anything else.

She again looked down at the ultrasound picture she held in her hand. "Your daddy is gonna be so excited about you two." Her free hand rubbed her stomach. "We should call him and see what he's up to today. He's supposed to be in the studio, but he doesn't always do what momma tells him to."

She picked up her phone again and dialed Deacon's number. "You're supposed to be in the studio, Deacon." She mock scolded him when she heard him pick up the phone.

"I think what you meant to say was 'Hi, love of my life, thank you for the t-shirt and the cute note' to which I would reply you're welcome." He laughed.

"Thank you, it was incredibly sweet. Do you have daddy duty tonight?" She asked.

"Nope, Teddy swore to me that he's got 'em tonight. I don't know what he's been up to, but I've had those girls more than he has lately. The only thing I have slated for today is studio time. I have three songs down cold A fourth one that I'm in the process of recording and a few more I'm working on." He replied.

"So it's safe to say you have a free night?" There was a playful tone in her voice.

"That is a very safe bet." He agreed.

"Good, I was hoping you wouldn't mind catching a plane and coming to play our CMA Award nominated song tonight." She retorted.

"I will see you tonight then. Teddy is out of luck if something comes up. I'm heading into the studio for a little while and then I'll be on a plane. I love you."

"Love you more, have a safe flight." She was still smiling when she hung up the phone with him.

* * *

"Ok, ya'll are too much. I can't even handle being on the same stage as you I feel like you're gonna burn it down." Sadie commented later that night. The three of them were catching a late dinner after their show.

"Blame that on the diva sittin' next to me. She takes up all the energy in the room at all times. It's a wonder I can even sit over here because of the size of her ego." Deacon joked. He dodged a playful slap that Rayna sent his way. "Hey, I am an injured man you can't abuse me if you want that album done anyway soon."

"Just remember that I'm your boss now before you go running off at the mouth about my ego. And then you wonder where Maddie got her mouth from." Rayna slapped his knee.

"I don't have the sassy mouth that's you. I'll be the first to admit that she got my temper. So, get this Daphne, Scarlet, and I are all sitting on the couch the other night out of nowhere Maddie takes a shoe and chucks it across the room cause she's pissed. That's classic Deacon behavior. I call her Little Deacon and it pisses her off so bad." He laughed. He had Rayna and Sadie rolling with laughter.

"Tell me she didn't." Rayna begged him.

"Oh, she did. So then I have to tell her according to your momma that's not an acceptable way to express your anger. Me I think it's alright as long as you don't hurt anyone, so we better go with what your momma says on this one." He went on.

"What made her mad enough to throw her shoe?" Sadie asked.

"She was pissed because the dog chewed on her shoe." He put his hand over his mouth the moment that sentence left it.

Rayna turned and gave him a look. "Deacon John, you bought them a dog?"

"I didn't say dog." He shook his head violently.

"You said dog." Rayna argued.

"It did sound an awful lot like you said dog." Sadie sided with Rayna.

"Ok, you two bullies, I said dog." He pulled up a picture on his phone of the girls with the dog and showed it to them.

"That is adorable and so staying at your house until it's house broken." Rayna melted inside. This was how she always dreamed it could be with him.

"What is that a blue tick?" Sadie asked him.

"He is a blue tick his name is Elvis because we got him in Memphis and that was the only name we could all agree upon. And he's already house broken. I got him from a breeder that also trains them from birth to be hunting dogs." He took a sip of his tea.

"You're lucky you're cute and the best damn guitar player in the business so I can't kill you." Rayna pinched his cheek.

"Sadie, if I die in a horrible accident tell the world that she did it." He joked.

"Deacon, I like you and you're a nice guy, but women have to stick together." Sadie shook her head in mock sadness.

"Ya'll are evil. Just for this I'm resending my invitation to pay for dinner." He tried to keep a straight face.

"Consider yourself apologized to then and put your arm back in the sling. You're not all the way healed yet." Rayna lectured.

"Rayna, you know if you needed to tell me something in confidence you could and it wouldn't go any further don't you?" Sadie asked as they rode the elevator back to their hotel room. Deacon was down at the front desk securing a room for himself.

"Sadie, I don't know what you're talking about." Rayna denied.

"Come on, I see the way you look at him and the way he looks at you. He goes out of his way to do sweet things for you and when you answer the phone to him your eyes light up. I don't see Luke do any of things for you and you look like the spark goes out of you when he calls." Sadie called her out.

"It's Deacon and it will always be Deacon. I don't have to stroke his ego or try to make myself small so he feels bigger. We aren't together, but we will be when I break up with Luke." Rayna said and it felt good to have someone else to confide in.

"Good for you, I haven't met Luke but the one time when he stopped by, but he's an ass. Deacon is a good guy." Sadie smiled.

"Thanks, I know he is." Rayna replied.

* * *

Three Weeks Later

Deacon stood out on his front lawn holding a leash in his hand. "Elvis, come on and do your thing so we can go inside I'm tired." He talked to his dog.

"So, this is the infamous Elvis?" Rayna walked up from the street. She was using baggy clothing and coats to hide her growing baby bump these days. Her stylist had been a God send. She had been dressing her in loose flowing dresses nothing too tight or that would call attention to her midsection.

"Hey, Ray, what are you doing here? It's getting late and I thought you had a reporter following you around this weekend." A grin was plastered on his face.

"I ditched the reporter. He got everything he needed for his article including going cake tasting with Luke and me. Aren't you gonna introduce me to your dog?" She replied.

He picked the dog up and scratched his ears. "Rayna, this is Elvis, Elvis meet Rayna."

She patted the dog's head. He had large black spots on him with black and white fur. His ears and face were black with a stripe of white running up his nose between his eyes and covering his head. "Deacon, we need to talk."

"You changed your mind and you don't actually want me to go to the awards even if it is just as Sadie's date?" He asked playfully.

"No, uh when we got back to the house tonight Maddie and Colt were on the couch making out. The reporter was still with us. In exchange for not printing that I had to give him something." She broached the subject carefully.

"I can't stand that kid, Ray, there's just something about him. He gets her into way too much trouble. What did you have to give him?" He clenched and unclenched his fist.

"Us I had to give them us. I had to give them our story or at least part of it so the magazine wouldn't drag our daughter through the mud." She braced herself for the explosion of his famous temper she knew was coming.

He however surprised her. He took a deep calming breath and looked her in the eyes. "It's for our daughter I'd do anything to protect her. Even if you probably did paint to be a lovesick fool in some magazine. Do you still love me and are we still gonna be together?"

"Of course I still love you and we are still gonna be together. Just three more days that's what I have to keep telling myself to get through this weekend. Three more days on Wednesday night after those awards I'm all yours. I promise you that there is nothing I want more than you right now." She smiled up at him. "You have no idea how badly I want to kiss you right now, but I can't because we are out in the open."

"I can remedy that." He took her hand and pulled her off to the side of the house. He tilted her chin up and planted a lingering kiss on her lips.

She buried her face in his chest once they broke apart. She wrapped her arms around him and held on for dear life. "That was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do. I just feel so raw and vulnerable right now."

"Shh, it's alright, everything is gonna be alright. I'm gonna make sure of that. Our past has some painful memories and it does feel raw when that gets exposed. You were protecting our little girl and you didn't have another choice. Like I said I much rather I look like a fool than have her be hurt." He played with her hair and rested his forehead against hers.

"I don't know when you got so rational, but I like it. You are the man that I always knew you could be. You know how to love me now." She peered up into his clear blue eyes.

"You were at the Bluebird that night." He gave her a lopsided grin. _"This brand new man won't let you down. If you let me show you I know how to love you now."_ He sang softly into her ear.

Shivers went up and down her spine from his hot breath on her ear. "I was there I snuck in through the back. I better go. He's gonna be wondering where I am." She groaned in frustration.

Deacon kissed her again to get his fill of her while he could. "Go on, we've made this far we can make it three more days. I don't guess I'll see you again until Wednesday since you'll have the girls. So, until then know that I love you and I am counting down the seconds."

"God, I love you so much, babe." She lingered in his arms for just a moment longer before she walked back to her car.

* * *

Luke was sitting on the edge of the bed waiting when Rayna got home. "How'd it go?"

"It went well I just had to give the reporter a bigger story to focus on." She replied. She gathered up her pajamas so she could take them into the bathroom and change. She wasn't going to give him the chance to see her naked and catch on to the fact that she was pregnant.

"What took you so long?" He asked.

"I had to stop by and see Deacon." She answered.

"What the fuck did you need to see him about?" He demanded.

"First of all he's one of artists and second of all he's the father of my child. And I had to see him because I had to give the reporter our story to get him to back off Maddie and Colt. That was something he deserved to know about beforehand so he isn't blindsided by it when it comes out." She listed off.

"Thank you for saving my son's young ass even if he won't admit that he's grateful to you I can." He wrapped his arms around her.

"You know today was our original wedding date?" She mused. She couldn't help thinking that she had dodged a bullet there.

"I know, if we could have just gotten these kids to cooperate we could be married right now." It was still a bit of a sore subject for him.

"What's done is done there is no use rehashing it." She went to go into the bathroom to change, but he grabbed her arm and stopped her.

"Where do you think you're goin' off to? I've been waitin' to get you alone all weekend and do the dirty, dirty things I've been thinkin' about doin' to you for a very long time." His voice took on a husky quality.

"Luke, I'm really tired and I just got put through the ringer emotionally I'm not in the mood. I'm sorry." She apologized.

"Come on, Rayna, I've missed you something terrible and I just wanna make love to you." He begged.

"I said not tonight, Luke, take no for an answer and leave it alone." She jerked her arm away from him and stormed into the bathroom.

"Damn it, Rayna, I'm sorry. I'm a jerk when I want to be and I shouldn't have pushed you bout it. Take your time." He called after her not knowing that he was too little too late.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Next chapter is a very big chapter and I think you're going to like that one just as much. After the next chapter it's time for other characters to come out and play. Until next time please review.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. This is the chapter that you guys have been waiting for.

* * *

Chapter 6

The night of the CMA Awards finally arrived much to the excitement of both Deacon and Rayna and it had nothing to do with any awards. After tonight they were finally free to be together. He didn't normally do awards shows the only reason he was going tonight was because he was nominated and because Rayna had asked him to or he wouldn't have gone. He had the girls all situated for the night. They were at his place with Scarlett since he, Rayna, and Teddy would all be at the awards. He drummed his fingers on the arm rest in the back of the limo to burn off some energy.

"Relax would you? You're making me nervous all the way over here." Sadie teased him. She had on a short black dress.

"I'm not nervous at all. I'm just excited." He corrected her.

"I know tonight is the night. Then after that my two favorite duet partners get to be together." She smiled to put him at ease.

"Just because I am constantly surrounded by women does not mean I engage in girl talk." He grinned.

"Lean over here and let me straighten your tie before I walk that red carpet with you. I can't have you looking a mess." She corrected his tie when he leaned over.

Someone opened the door to the limo. Deacon got out first and then he offered his hand to Sadie and helped her out. "Little Sister, you better appreciate the fact that I was willing to come as your date. It takes a lot to get me out to one of these shows." He'd started jokingly calling her Little Sister and the nickname had stuck.

"Whatever you say, Freakin' Deacon," She joked right back with him.

They walked the red carpet and posed for pictures. They fielded the questions that were being hurled at them left and right. Rayna waited for them inside the door with Luke by her side.

"There ya'll are. I was starting to wonder if Deacon decided to duck out at the last second." Rayna was dressed in a blue gown that was cut to hide her belly.

"You're so funny you look gorgeous tonight." Deacon kissed her cheek. He let his lips linger just a second longer than they needed to.

"Thank you, you clean up nice." Rayna gave him a warm smile.

"Deacon," Luke nodded at him.

"Luke," Deacon returned the greeting in kind.

"Sadie, not only do you look beautiful you managed to drag him here without talking you into letting him stay home I'm impressed." Rayna hugged the younger woman.

"He only made the excuse of having feed Elvis and walk him and then he had to go back one more time to check on the girls. Scarlett gave me his keys and then locked him out." Sadie laughed.

"If you'll excuse us we will see ya'll in there." Luke pulled Rayna along by the hand.

Sadie put her hand on Deacon's arm to stop him from doing something he'd regret. "Not here, Deacon. Someone needs to knock him on his ass, but it can't be here."

"She made you my babysitter for the night didn't she?" He arched his eyebrow.

"I have no comment." She gave him an impish grin.

Being seated next to Luke and Rayna for the awards made the night long and at times awkward. As the night wore on Deacon could see Luke get a little sullener with every award that Rayna won. Every time she had to step past him to walk up to the stage he would discreetly grab her hand and smile at her.

Eric Church presented the award for music event of the year. "And this years winner for music event of the year goes to Rayna Jaymes, Sadie Stone, and Deacon Claybourne for Something Bad."

Deacon got out of his seat and let Rayna and Sadie walk up on the stage ahead of him. All three of them were presented with a statue.

"Wow, to be called up here so many times in one night is absolutely amazing. I have to thank Sadie for being so great and such a quick study. I know how intense Deacon and I can get when it comes to music. And I have to thank Deacon for throwing the whole song and arrangement together about two hours before we preformed it for the first time." Rayna said.

"Many thanks go to Rayna she has been absolutely incredible I couldn't ask for a better label head and friend. I also have to thank Deacon who has taken me under his wing and become a mentor to me." Sadie went next.

"The wing that wasn't clipped at the time." Deacon joked and he drew the expected laughter. "I wanna thank my three girls at home. Scarlett, Maddie, Daphne, I would have never had the crude arrangement for that song down if not for you three I love you. Sadie, you are an unbelievably talented young performer and it is an honor to work with you. Ray, you stuck by me through my worst and you're still here now that I'm at my best I'll always be grateful."

The three walked off the stage and into the backstage area. Rayna swiped at her eyes quickly to dry the tears that had formed listening to Deacon speak. She looked around to make sure no one was watching and mouthed _'I love you'_ to him.

Deacon nodded his head as if to say me too.

"Well, looks like you racked up another one there didn't you, darlin'." Luke drawled. He had a glass of whiskey in his hand.

"That I did." Rayna replied curtly. He was such a sore loser.

"Good for you," Luke drained his glass and stalked off to the bathroom.

"Excuse me for a moment." Rayna went after him.

"Deacon, I know that you want to go after her that you feel like you need to, but don't. You're the nice guy, let him show his true colors without dragging you down with him." Sadie advised him.

"You're right, I know you're right. I shouldn't get involved." Deacon agreed. He didn't want to make a scene not when he had tried so hard to change for the better.

"Come on, let's go to the bar. I'll buy you a free ginger ale." She offered him her arm.

"Make it a club soda and you've got yourself a deal." He looped his arm through hers.

* * *

"Luke, what the hell do you think you're doing tonight?" Rayna demanded.

"I'm pretty sure that this is the men's room." Luke sneered.

"I don't give a damn. I'm not leaving until you tell me what the hell is wrong with you." She crossed her arms over her chest. She winced slightly in discomfort she'd momentarily forgotten how sensitive her breasts were these days.

"You can get up there and thank everyone under the sun Liam, Deacon, Bucky, your girls, but you can't thank me. I'm the reason that you have anything. Your album went number one because it was released the day I proposed to you. That's where all the press you've generated comes from. That label of yours would have gone under. You're nothing without me. You took those awards from me." He raged.

"Excuse you? I thanked Liam because produced the album and Deacon because he co-wrote that song with me. That is all there was to it. Anything I have I earned myself." She arched her eyebrow at him.

"And what the fuck was that shit up there in his acceptance speech? I hope he knows that his unrestricted access to you ends the minute that we get married. He ain't even to walk in that house he can pick Maddie up from the driveway. There won't even be a need for that they are just gonna go to boarding school with my kids anyway. It gives them a more stable base with us out on the road so much." He went on full steam ahead.

"You are a nasty drunk. I once told you that if you didn't want me to compare you to Deacon not to act like him when he was on a bender. I was wrong you're worse than he ever was. He'd get pissed and get into fights but he never talked to me like that or thought that he owned me. Those are my children you will not tell me what I'm going to do regarding them. And Deacon is Maddie's father that is my house he is welcome." Fire flashed in her eyes. She felt herself get dizzy and she knew she had to get out of there for the sake of her unborn children. She left him standing in the bathroom.

* * *

Deacon sipped on his club soda while he leaned up against the bar. Sadie had left him to get ready for her performance, but not before making sure that he was going to behave himself.

"Hey, Deacon, I didn't think I'd see you here." Gunnar walked up and shook his hand.

"I was dragged against my will by the two crazy women I was just up on stage with." Deacon replied.

"Yeah, I've kinda noticed that they can handle you." Gunnar ordered a drink.

"I'm surrounded by women these days and I wouldn't have it any other way. How are you and Zoe?" Deacon asked to make conversation.

"We're good she's back out there waiting for me." Gunnar took a sip of his drink.

"I should probably be getting back out there so my seat isn't empty. I'm just waiting on Rayna." Deacon drummed his knuckles on top of the bar. He was starting to get worried about her.

"Here she comes now and she looks pissed. I'll leave you to it." Gunnar patted him on the back and walked away.

"Is that club soda?" Rayna took Deacon's drink before he had a chance to answer. She already knew the answer to that. His drink of choice had been whiskey. She took a drink in hopes of calming her queasy stomach.

"You know it is. I'm not gonna take a tumble off the wagon so publically." He looked at her concerned.

"I'm riding home with you and Sadie. I can't go home with that man. I refuse to, Deacon. I thought that you were an asshole drunk that was nothing compared to what he's like. He's so fucking lucky I didn't throw this ring in his damn face in that bathroom. I have such a headache." She rubbed her temple with her thumb.

"That's fine you're more than welcome. You should know that, Ray. I know how to cure that headache." He ordered a ginger ale from the bartender. "Here, drink that it'll help with the headache and it'll settle your stomach. You're lookin' kinda green." He handed it to her and took his club soda back.

"Thank you. What you said up there was incredibly sweet. I love how hard you work to include Daphne. They are all your girls. It's not my daughter, my niece, and my daughter's sister. It's my three girls. That is how you always refer to them. I don't even think you realize it." She smiled and sipped on her ginger ale. She rested her hand on her stomach for a moment and then moved it away quickly.

"It's just a habit I got myself into and I couldn't break it if I wanted to. I don't ever want Daphne to feel like she's losing her sister to me. That's why I didn't push to have Maddie's last name changed. That's something I'm leaving up to her. We've talked about it and she knows I support her no matter what she decides." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Deacon, you're making it incredibly hard for me not to stick my tongue down your throat right now." She told him lowly. Thanks to her pregnancy her sex drive had been cranked up to a hundred and ten. She couldn't do anything about being horny until she broke up with Luke. She damn sure wasn't going to let him touch her while she was carrying Deacon's babies.

"Hold that thought. I'm gonna mess those lips all up once I get you in that limo and away from prying eyes." He put his mouth close to her ear and whispered.

She shivered involuntarily. "You better watch yourself I don't have an extra pair of panties if you make me soak these." She whispered back to him.

"Rayna Jaymes, do you kiss our daughter with that mouth?" His eyes twinkled with mirth.

"I can do a lot of things with this mouth." She winked at him. She shouldn't tease him like that because she was just making things worse for herself. She really hadn't been kidding about her panties. "Speaking of our girl. I have a surprise for you later. I think you're really gonna love it."

His eyes got wide and he shook his head. "I'll be looking forward to it then." He finished his drink. "We should get back to our seats it's almost time for the big award."

"Let's go," She agreed.

* * *

Luke purposefully bumped into Deacon's sore shoulder on his way back to his seat it didn't help matters that he was drunk and uncoordinated at the moment either, but it was obvious he'd done it on purpose.

Deacon just bit his lip hard and took a deep breath. He kept telling himself over and over that Luke Wheeler wasn't worth going to jail for.

"You ok?" Sadie whispered to him.

Deacon nodded his head slowly.

"You smell like the bottom of a whiskey barrel." Rayna whispered harshly to Luke.

"I ain't quite found the bottom yet, darlin', but I'm workin on it. I'll let you know when I get there." Luke reclaimed his seat.

As if she wasn't having a hard enough time keeping the contents of her stomach where they belonged the smell of whiskey coming off of Luke made her stomach turn once again. "Sadie, switch me seats, I can't be next to him right now." She rather it look like they were fighting than puke on live TV.

"Sure," Sadie got up and let Rayna take her seat.

"You ok?" Deacon leaned over and whispered.

"He has whiskey coming out of his pores. I just can't sit that close to him." Rayna replied.

Deacon produced two sticks of gum from his pocket. "You take one it helps. Have Sadie give the other one to Wheels Up. He doesn't need to embarrass himself smelling like that. He won't take it from either one of us. If you can smell him Blake can smell him. Actually here pass that down to Blake he probably needs it too." He gave her another stick of gum.

Rayna laughed and passed it down. "Sadie, make Luke chew one of those. Give the other one to Blake and tell him it's from Deacon."

"Luke, chew this so you don't run everyone out of this row. And give that other one to Blake tell him it's from Deacon." Sadie handed him the gum.

"Thanks, Sadie," Luke gave her a weak smile. Shit maybe he had gone just a little too far. He passed the other stick of gum over. "Blake, that's from Deacon apparently we are stinking up this whole row."

Blake Shelton took the offered stick of gum and popped it in his mouth. "Hey, thanks, asshole." He called down to Deacon.

"You're welcome, asshole. You and Wheels Up smell like the brewery section." Deacon called back.

From the other side of Blake Miranda Lambert blew Deacon a kiss and he winked back at her with a laugh.

Rayna arched an eyebrow at him.

"Relax," Deacon told her.

Finally Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood came back on to the stage.

"Our final award tonight is for Entertainer of the Year." Brad began.

"And the nominees are, Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Rayna Jaymes, and Luke Wheeler." Carrie read off. Each person's picture flashed up on the screen.

"And this year's Entertainer of the Year award goes to Ms. Rayna Jaymes." Brad announced after he opened the envelope.

Rayna got to her feet with a smile. This was the one award that she had truly wanted to beat Luke out for.

Deacon stood and hugged her quickly. "I am so proud of you." he whispered.

Rayna made her way up to the stage to accept her award. "Gosh, after being up here so much I've almost run out of words. To all the women out there that have a dream don't be afraid to chase it down you really can have it all. Don't ever let anyone tell you that you're not good enough or you owe what you are to them. Those aren't the kind of people you want in your corner." She made sure that she was starting Luke down when she said that.

"The best thing that you can have in your corner is a good man that loves you no matter what and knows that your successes are his as well. So, to the man who loves me unconditionally and always has my back no matter what. This is for you, babe, I never would have made it without you. There is no difference between you and music to me." She looked right into Deacon's eyes as she spoke. It didn't matter to her that the only two people in the whole world that knew she was talking to Deacon were her and Deacon. She got to tell him how she really felt and put Luke in his place at the same time.

Though the whole auditorium was full she swore she could hear Deacon cheering for her louder than anyone else.

* * *

After the ceremony ended Luke disappeared back to the bar or some after party knowing him. Rayna wasn't really sure. She just knew she didn't want to see him for a little while. Deacon helped her and Sadie both climb into the limo before he got in.

"Rayna, just let me say I've seen some badass things in my day, but nothing will ever top you basically telling Luke to go to hell on national Tv. That was epic." Sadie said as soon as they pulled away from the curb.

"Bastard shouldn't have told me that the only reason I was nominated was because my album dropped on the day he proposed to me." Rayna threw out there casually.

"Deacon, if you don't kiss this woman right now I'm gonna do it for you." Sadie turned to the man she had come to think of as her big brother.

"With pleasure, Little Sister." Deacon leaned over and planted a tender kiss to Rayna's lips. "I've been waiting all night to do that."

"I've been waiting for you to do that all night." Rayna smiled against his lips.

"Deacon, your girlfriend just told Luke Wheeler to go get screwed on national TV." Sadie stressed playfully. That was the greatest thing she had ever seen. Especially considering everything she'd been through with her ex husband.

"That's my girl, Sadie." Deacon beamed with pride.

Rayna took that monstrosity of an engagement off her finger and put it in her purse. "Now, I'm your girl."

"You've always been my girl, no matter who's ring you were wearing." He was relieved to see her finally take that damn thing off.

The limo dropped Sadie off first and then Rayna lowered the partition to give the driver directions. She pulled a wrapped package out of a gift bag and handed it to Deacon. "This is for you. It's not your surprise, but I thought you would like it just the same."

He unwrapped the package and smiled when he saw a framed photograph of him, Maddie, Daphne, and Scarlett in standing in front of Graceland. Daphne stood in front of him. He had his right arm around Maddie and Scarlett had her arm around him. They all had big smiles on their faces. It had been taken after his motorcycle accident because his left arm was in the sling. Craved into the bottom of the frame were the words My Girls. "Ray, I love this."

"I thought that might be the case." She smiled.

The limo dropped them off at the Cumberland River Pedestrian Bridge. Deacon got out first and then helped her out. They walked across the bridge holding hands and Rayna came to a stop when they reached the middle. She pulled an envelope out of her purse. "See there was one award that they forgot to give away tonight." She handed the envelope to him.

Deacon accepted the envelope and looked it over. It looked just like the envelopes used in the CMA Awards that held the names of the winners. He very carefully raised the seal and opened the envelope. The inside read The award for the best expectant daddy in country music goes to Deacon Claybourne. Underneath his name was an ultrasound picture of each of the twins. Under picture it said Baby Claybourne A and under the other it said Baby Claybourne B.

His eyes teared up and his throat got tight. "Ray, you're pregnant with my babies. You're pregnant with my babies and you believed in me enough to tell me." A smile slowly spread across his face. What had hurt the most with Maddie wasn't that she lied to him and had kept her from him. It was that she hadn't believed in him enough to think telling him would have made him change.

"I'm pregnant with your babies and I told you. I believe in you more than any other man I've ever met. I'm surprised you haven't noticed before now. If it wasn't for the flattering clothing I have a pretty good baby bump starting. I'm roughly nineteen weeks pregnant." She told him.

He just stood there staring at the ultrasound pictures in a trance.

"Babe, please say something. Are you mad? Happy? Sad?" She tried to get him to talk. She didn't like it when he shut down on her.

"Rayna, I'm happier than I can put into words right now. We are gonna be parents again and I'm gonna get to do this with you from day one. You have no idea how happy I am. I love you so much." He pulled her to him and kissed her deeply with tears sliding down his face. One of his hands went to her stomach as they kissed and he rubbed it.

"I'm happy too, babe. I love you more than I can say. I'm so glad you're happy." She said when he stopped kissing her. She put her hand on top of his and laced their fingers together.

He dropped to his knees and kissed her stomach. "Hi, babies, this is your daddy. I love you, your sisters, and your momma so very much."

Rayna ran her fingers through his hair. This was all she had wanted during her entire pregnancy with Maddie. She let him stay down there and love on the babies for awhile before she spoke. "Babe, we need to go. I have to go home and break up with Luke and you have to get home to the girls."

"Ray, I'm sorry, but I don't want you alone with him right now. He's drunk and there is no telling how he will react. You can come home with me. You'll take my bed and I'll take the couch. I don't trust that man with you and my babies. I'm not going to let you get hurt. I understand that you need to talk to him alone, I'm just asking you to do it in the morning when he's sober." Deacon made a pretty reasonable request.

"Ok, I can do that, but you aren't sleeping on the couch. You're sleeping in that bed with your arms around me and your babies. Then you will sneak out in time to wake the girls up and get them off to school while I get some rest. After that we will go from there." She countered.

"That sounds like a good solid plan to me." He agreed.

* * *

Maddie and Daphne were both still waiting up when Deacon came home with Rayna. "Stay right outside the door." He handed her back the ultrasound pictures he'd held to tightly all the way home. "Put that in your purse, I'll let you know what you can come in." He snuck in a quick kiss and walked inside. "Guess whose home." He held his statue up proudly.

"Deacon! Oh, my god! You said my name on live Tv. Do you have any idea how huge that is? You are the best. And like you actually know Sadie Stone." Daphne hugged him around the waist tightly.

"I do know her and I did say your name on live Tv." He laughed.

"Dad, seriously you and mom are so freaking amazing. Like honestly you should have seen the way you two were looking at each other when you were up on stage. I'm so happy for you. I could have done without what mom said about Luke in her last speech though." Maddie hugged him too.

"Uncle Deacon, I'm so proud of you. Momma won't say it to you, but she's so proud she could spit. She had to call all her friends and tell them that her baby brother won a CMA." Scarlett hugged the only free spot left on her uncle.

"Dad, you have got to let us take a selfie with you and the award. It would make my life." Maddie gushed.

"Go for it, Maddie." He chuckled.

Maddie snapped the picture on her phone quickly.

"You know I think that picture was missing something." He turned and looked over his shoulder. "Hey, come on in here."

"Hi, my girls." Rayna walked in smiling.

"Mom, come get in the picture with us. Daph, grab Elvis he's part of the family too." Maddie encouraged her mother and sister. She waited for everyone to get in place before she took another picture.

"Alright, girls, bedtime. You've stayed up late enough as it is." Deacon ushered them off to bed to avoid them asking too many questions. "Ya'll got five minutes to have lights out and then I'm comin' to check. The big bad wolf comes out to play when he finds lights on." He teased them.

Daphne ran giggling down the hall and Maddie walked away shaking her head.

"I'm gonna go change I'll be right back." He excused himself.

"Rayna, if you want you can take my bed I'll sleep on the couch tonight." Scarlett offered.

"No, sweetie, you don't have to do that it's ok. Deacon and I will work that out." Rayna smiled.

Scarlett looked at her now bare left hand and nodded her head in understanding. "The last part of your acceptance speech wasn't meant for Luke it was meant for Uncle Deacon. You told me once that there was no difference in Deacon and music to you they were the same thing."

"I love that man so damn much, Scarlett. I promise I'm gonna do my best not to hurt him again." Rayna replied.

"He loves you just as much if not more. He's gonna try his hardest to not hurt you." Scarlett hugged her. She looked down at Rayna's midsection and then back up at her face.

"Let your uncle tell you about that." Rayna winked at her.

"Ya'll talkin' 'bout me?" Deacon came back dressed in a pair of jeans and a flannel shirt.

"Deacon, show Scarlett that other award you got tonight just be quiet about it." Rayna told him.

Deacon took the envelope out of Rayna's purse and handed it to Scarlett. "Feast your eyes on that."

Scarlett looked at it and her eyes got wide. "Oh, Uncle Deacon," She smiled at him.

"I'm gonna be a daddy again, Scarlett." He grinned proudly.

Scarlett hugged both Rayna and Deacon. "I'm so happy for you, guys. My lips are sealed."

The two turned in for the night a little while later. Deacon gave Rayna a pair of pajamas and they just laid in bed and talked all night while he held her and rubbed her belly. Things would get complicated again in the morning, but for tonight they could have one perfect, peaceful moment.

* * *

A/N: Here it is. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I have some really exciting stuff planned. Until next time please review.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 7

Deacon carried a tray of food into his bedroom the next morning after he got the girls off to school. He woke Rayna with a soft kiss on her lips. "Good morning, beautiful. I made you a breakfast befitting the Queen of Country Music and the mother of my unborn children."

"What do we have here?" Rayna sat up in bed with a smile.

"We have assorted fruit, toast, eggs, bacon, orange juice, and coffee. Even though you ain't really supposed to have it." He pointed to each item as he spoke.

She took his face in her hands and kissed him. "Thank you, babe, I'm carrying the babies of two musicians' coffee is already engrained in their bloodstream." She kissed him again. "God, I have got to break up with that man, because I need you in the worst way possible."

"I'm a recovering alcoholic I live on coffee. You do have to break up with him or I'm gonna forget my manners and have my way with you anyway. I ain't forgot what you said about your panties last night. But first you eat my baby birds need their strength." He set the tray in front of her.

"And I might let you. So they are baby birds?" She picked up her knife and fork and started eating.

"They are baby birds because with my track record and the fact I'm surrounded by women they are probably gonna be girls." His logic made perfect sense to him.

"As long as it makes sense to you, Deacon." She took a bite of her food. "Mmm, babe, what did you do with these eggs they are amazing?"

"I just fried you a couple eggs, Ray. I'm glad you like them so much." He chuckled.

"Do the girls know I stayed all night?" She asked. She ate like she hadn't eaten in days.

"They know I just told them that you slept here and I slept on the couch. They think that Luke had a business thing that you didn't want to go to and you stayed over because you didn't want to stay alone." He explained to her.

"Quick thinking, babe. They are easier to evade than the press though. I should probably check my phone and see who all has tried to call me." She stifled a yawn.

"I'm holding your phone ransom until you eat at least half your breakfast. I've informed Bucky of this and he agrees with me." He smirked.

"I don't expect it to be all bad when I finally look at my phone. I expect a lot of good news there too." She continued eating though both because she was starving and to appease him. He was just being a concerned daddy and she loved it.

Deacon opened up his laptop and lounged beside her in bed while she ate. He tilted the screen towards her. "You tell me what you want to see and I'll navigate for you."

"Look up my album sales." She gave him a sweet smile. She had him in the palm of her hand and they both knew it.

He went to the figures she'd requested.

"I'll have to check my phone when you give it back, but those numbers look really good. I'm a little surprised that my sister isn't beating your front door down yet. She is gonna be livid that I've been outta touch so long." She groaned. She had so much work waiting for her.

"I'm a little shocked myself. Speaking of being out of touch. What are we gonna do about your tour? You obviously can't go jetting across the country for much longer. But I should let you handle one thing at a time I was just thinking out loud." He searched the news outlets outlets for her just to see what the buzz was this morning. "Oh lord, people are already speculating about you switching seats with Sadie last night."

"I knew that it was a risky move, but I didn't care. Deacon, you don't understand how bad he smelled and how sick it was making me feel. I took the chance on people talking about me moving away from him rather than have the whole country see me puke. My stomach was already upset anyway. He was not helping matters." She didn't care people could talk. Soon she would really give them something to talk about.

"I know how bad it smells not only did I smell him last night, but there were times when I drank so much I could smell myself for days no matter how many showers I took. That's ok I liked that I got to be the one sitting right next to you when you won the whole damn rodeo." He looked over and checked to see how much of her breakfast she'd eaten. To his pleasant surprise she'd eaten it all. "It looks like my babies enjoyed my cooking." He moved the tray out of the way for her.

"They enjoyed it very much and so did I. That was much better than the super healthy crap that Bucky has been trying to force down me." She stretched out her muscles and smiled contentedly. "Deacon, come kiss me."

He was all too happy to comply with that request. He gave her a deep lingering kiss. "Ok, now as much as I don't want to do this I have to take you home, so you can break up with this asshole. Cause next time I kiss you like that I ain't gonna be able to stop."

"Here we go, get ready for a media firestorm." She sighed, but he was worth every ounce of trouble that she was about to go through.

* * *

Rayna drove out to Luke's ranch at this point she didn't want him in her house ever again. She found him down at the stables brushing out his horses.

"Rayna, I can't say that I expected to see you here this morning. I thought I'd have to be the one to extend the olive branch. And rightfully so I screwed up pretty badly. My ego got the better of me and I'm really sorry. I said a lot of things that I didn't mean last night." Luke toyed with the edge of his ever present cowboy hat.

"Luke, I can't even begin to address your behavior last night. There aren't words for me to express how pissed off I still am about that." She began.

"I will spend the rest of my life apologizing to you for my behavior last night. I have to give Deacon credit. He saved my ass with that gum after I ran into his hurt shoulder on purpose. Though I suppose he was doing that to spare you the embarrassment, but still I appreciated it none the less." He dug the toe of his boot in the dirt.

"Here's the thing, Luke. I've been doing a lot of thinking about things lately. About the life I want and about the person I want to be. You crave the spotlight you want it in every aspect of your life. I've tried to shield my girls from that. Your lifestyle isn't one that I've ever envisioned for myself. I've been stuck in the same cycle for a long time and I need to break it. I can't do to you what I did to Teddy." She just started talking to get this over with. She played with her fingers.

"I'm not Teddy," He looked at her and he noticed for the first time that she wasn't wearing her ring. "But I'm not Deacon either am I?"

She reached into her pocket and pressed the engagement ring into his hand. "I've loved that man since I was sixteen years old and that's never gonna change. But it's more than that. We just don't belong together, Luke."

"Rayna, please don't do this. I love you." His voice betrayed the fact that he was on the verge of tears.

"But I don't love you. I let you rush me into something that I wasn't ready for and it twisted me up inside until I became someone that I didn't recognize. Our lives are just too different and they always will be." She told him. This was harder than she thought it would be.

"Truthfully I expected this last night when I took the limo to your house and you weren't there. I halfway thought that this ring would be waiting on the doorstep for me. It would've been better to just go through with it and taken care of it later." He stared at the engagement ring in his hand.

"I'm sorry it came to this I tried to tell you so many times that I didn't want this and the way you proposed you made it impossible to say no." She sighed.

"Just tell me this one thing. Is this a Deacon thing?" He asked.

"Yes it is. He's the man I love and the person I want to spend the rest of my life with." She was sure of that much.

"Get the fuck off of my property and don't come back." His voice was monotone and detached.

"I'll see you around, Luke." She got in her car and drove away. She felt more free than she ever had in her entire life.

* * *

"I let her go out there alone. I shouldn't have let her go out there alone. He has a temper to rival mine." Deacon paced around his living room wildly. He was worried out his mind about Rayna and their babies.

"Uncle Deacon, sit down and calm down. She is fine. You did the right thing by letting her take care of this on her own. She will call you when she needs you. He's not gonna hurt her he isn't stupid enough to do something like that." Scarlett drank her coffee as she watched him pace.

"I know that I really do know that. It doesn't mean that I'm not gonna worry though. I just feel the need to protect her, you girls, and those babies in the very fiber of who I am." He stressed to her.

"Those are your daddy instincts. You've always had them even as a little boy from what momma says. It's probably because grandpa was the way that he was with ya'll." She knew that was a hot button issue with her uncle, but if anyone could get away with saying it she could.

"I did the best I could, but it wasn't always enough. It's never felt like it's been enough." For whatever reason Scarlett was the only person other than Rayna he could be that open and honest with. "Distract me, what do you have going on today?"

"Well, I'm just gonna go in and try to get some writing done. We will see how that goes I've been so blocked up lately." She rubbed the back of her neck.

"I may have a way to help you out with that. You should come sit in with me on one of the sessions I do with Sadie. Rayna's had me helping her to develop her skills as a songwriter and fill out her album. The woman thinks I'm a miracle worker or something." He suggested.

"Yeah, that could be ok." She agreed halfheartedly.

"Scarlett, you're one of my girls and you know that I will support you no matter what you decide. I think that you need to maybe take baby steps and try to put yourself back in the mix. I'm not saying throw you in the deep end of the pool and make you swim again. You're more than a faceless writer locked away in some room." He told her how he really felt.

"I don't know, Uncle Deacon. You remember what happened last time." She reminded him.

"The way I see it you can be remember as the girl who hid under the piano or you can go out there and shut them up." He advised her.

"Rayna! Rayna! Are you here?" Luke stormed through the front door.

"Wheeler, what the fuck do you think you're doing here? She's not here. You got no right to just barge in like you own the place." Deacon wheeled around to face him.

"You know I told myself not to bother, to stay away from her. That's Deacon's girl she's always gonna be Deacon's girl. Like a damn fool I didn't listen to myself. I don't know what the fuck she sees in you. You're nothing more than dried up drunk hanging on to the wagon by a thread." Luke took his rage out on him.

"You're leavin' before I call the cops and have your ass locked up." Deacon grabbed him by the arm and ushered him out the door.

"I should have known better than to go sniffing around that bitch." Luke muttered as he started to walk away.

"What did you say? Don't ever call her that." Deacon tackled him to the ground and started wailing on him.

"Deacon!" Scarlett ran out of the house. "Deacon, stop it! You're gonna kill him." She grabbed his arm.

Deacon got up and wiped blood from the corner of his mouth. "Wheels Up, jackass." He spit out.

* * *

"Rayna, what were you thinking?" Tandy asked her sister.

"Tandy, if you'd seen the way he behaved last night you would have done the same thing. You never liked Deacon because he was a drunk. Hell you didn't like Deacon before he was drunk, but that's not the point. The point is I have put up with a lot of drunken behavior in my day and Deacon never got to the point that Luke reached last night and his benders lasted weeks sometimes." Rayna replied. She was regrouping at her house with Bucky and Tandy.

"So, does that mean you don't try to work it out?" Tandy questioned.

"It wasn't just last night. This has been a long time coming. I only waited as long as I did so we could both make it through award season with our images in tact." Rayna scoffed.

"Ray, Luke's people are trying to stick you with the bill for the wedding." Bucky reported the contents of the phone call he had just gotten off of.

"Get the legal team on it and fight it, Buck. That was the damn over the top wedding that he wanted not me. If he wants to play like this he can play with the Wyatt side of me." Rayna ordered.

Bucky picked up his tablet. "There's something else that you should see." He showed her a video of Luke and Deacon's fight that had been uploaded to YouTube.

"That's wonderful. The man just can't help himself. I guess that's something else you'll have to get him out of." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"You don't know Deacon like I do. He wouldn't have done that without being provoked. The video was taken at his house. Luke obviously went there and provoked him." Rayna defended Deacon even though she was gonna get ahold of him once she got him alone.

The doorbell went off repeatedly.

"I'll get that it's probably some reporter I'm going to have to chase away." Tandy got up to answer the door.

"You've gotta tell her, Ray. She's already been on my case trying to get what I know out of me. She's your sister and she loves you she's not gonna disown you." Bucky told her.

"I'm going to tell her as soon as Deacon gets here. And then as soon as you can you're going to take her somewhere and distract her so I don't have to listen to her lecture me all day. It's not good for me in my condition." Rayna gave him a cheeky smile.

"You assume I want to take her anywhere with the mood she's in." Bucky groaned.

"Take one for the team, Buck. She's your girlfriend you're the only one who wants to put up with her willingly." Rayna countered.

"She's not my girlfriend, Ray. For the love of God don't let her hear you put a label on it." He begged.

"Rayna, you have a visitor." The tone of Tandy's voice said what she thought about that.

"Hey, Ray," Deacon grinned at her with a split lip.

"Is there a media circus out front yet?" Rayna looked him up and down. She noticed that his arm was in the sling again.

"Not yet or I wouldn't have risked it." Deacon replied.

"Hurt your arm in your amateur boxing match?" Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"A little bit." Deacon admitted.

Rayna got up and put a soft hand on his cheek. "Babe, your lip."

"I've had worse. For the record he busted into my house." Deacon offered a little bit of defense.

"I know I'll try talking to him again. Maybe he can be reasoned with." Rayna sighed. This was only the beginning of this circus.

"What is going on here?" Tandy had her suspicions, but she wanted to hear her little sister say it.

Rayna grabbed Deacon's hand in a show of solidarity. "Tandy, I'm with Deacon and I'm going to be with him from now on. Also I'm pregnant with his twins." She thought it was best to just get it all out of the way at once.

Deacon squeezed her hand.

Tandy looked at her sister intently for a moment and then she sighed. "Babe, you know that if you're happy I'm happy for you. I just don't want to see you get hurt again. I'm beyond thrilled that you're making me an aunt again, but I'm cautious."

"I know what I'm doing, Tandy." Rayna assured her.

"Just so long as you know. You're the one who has to tell daddy about this not me." Tandy shrugged and then she turned to Deacon. "Deacon, so help me God if you hurt them no one will ever find your body."

"Tandy, they are my family. It's Maddie, it's Daphne, it's those babies, and Ray and me. That's how it's supposed to be. This is our second chance I'm not gonna do anything to screw that up. I'm also not gonna be bullied or pushed around when it comes to my family. I'm not the same messed up drunk that I used to be. I love her the way that I should now." Deacon stood up to her.

"There may be hope for you yet, but I have the right to reserve judgment." Tandy said after a moment. He'd impressed her and she didn't want to admit it. "So, twins?" She asked with a small smile.

"Yeah, twins. I was just as shocked as you are when I first found out." Rayna smiled back.

"Ray, you're either gonna have to release a statement or do a press conference before things get out of control." Bucky interrupted.

"Before I do anything I need to talk to my girls." Rayna had to put them first.

"Scarlett went to get them. I knew after that street brawl it wouldn't be long they should be here any minute." Deacon was on top of things.

"Just when I think I can't love you more I do." Rayna leaned into him.

* * *

Scarlett dropped the girls off fifteen minutes later the news vans were just starting to show up outside.

"You ready for this?" Rayna asked Deacon.

"As ready as I'm ever gonna be." He replied.

They gathered the girls in the living room and sat them down on the couch.

"Alright, girls, your momma and I want to have a little talk with you. We are about to throw a bunch of stuff at you, but once we're done you can ask any questions you want." Deacon began. He reached out and took Rayna's hand.

Maddie's eyes lit up at the gesture. "Wait? Does this mean you guys are together? Like together-together?"

"So you're not marrying Luke?" Daphne asked excitedly.

"That's right Deacon and I are together and I'm not marrying Luke." Rayna confirmed.

"Mom, that's so awesome. We love Deacon. I mean I know he's Maddie's dad, but I love him too." Daphne chattered.

"Before you two get all excited there's more." Deacon looked at Rayna to see if she wanted to handle it, but she nodded for him to. "Your momma is pregnant with our twins. Now you both get to feel however you want about that, but you need to know that no matter what you are always gonna be loved and wanted. No one could ever replace you. I know that is a lot to handle, it's a lot for me to handle and I'm an adult. I can't imagine how hard it is on you."

"The important thing we want you girls to know is that Deacon and I are both here for you any time you want to talk. You can tell us anything." Rayna added.

"Dad, are you going to love these babies more than you love me?" Maddie asked.

"Absolutely not, Maddie. No matter what you will always be my first daughter and no one can take that away from you." Deacon reassured her.

"I'll be the only one out of place Deacon is Maddie's dad and he's these babies' dad I won't fit in, in my own family anymore." Daphne looked down at the floor sadly.

"Daphne, that's not true, baby girl. That is so far from true. You are so important to me. My life wouldn't be complete without you in it." Rayna told her.

"Squirt, can you and I talk in private for a minute?" Deacon offered her his hand.

Daphne nodded her head and took his hand.

Deacon led her to the music room and lifted her up on the piano bench. He took both of her hands and kneeled down in front of her. "Do you know what a big important part of my life you are? I don't have you around all the time because I feel sorry for you or because it's the right thing to do. I always have you around because I want you there you're one of my girls. I love you just as much as I do Maddie and these babies. You're not just Maddie's sister or Rayna's daughter to me you're my girl. You're my Squirt."

"I just don't want to be the only one who is different." She looked at him with tears in her eyes.

"You're not gonna be any different. You can ask anybody when I talk about my kids I always say my three girls. That's Scarlett, Maddie, and you. You will always be your momma and daddy's baby that makes you special. And you're getting ready to be even more special than you already are. You're gonna be a big sister and these babies they are gonna look up to you so much. I'm gonna need your help with them the same way I need your help to deal with Maddie." He explained.

She mustered a small smile. "Do you really mean that? I'm special?"

"Of course I mean that. You know my promise I don't say things to you that I don't mean. You're my little buddy. Maddie ditches us to text with her friends. You and I hang out together all the time and that will never change. The sun will come up in the morning and if it's my day to take you to school I'll take you just like always. Each one of you holds a special place in my heart and you can't replace each other." He squeezed her hands a little tighter.

She put her arms around his neck. "Deacon, I love you and I'm glad that you're gonna be my stepdad one day instead of Luke. He took us to dinner one night and tried to talk us into going to boarding school."

"I love you too, Squirt. I could never send ya'll away I'd miss you too much. We ready to go back to your momma and Maddie?" He asked.

"Let's go." She jumped down and kept a tight grip on one of his hands.

"Alright, I think we are all sorted out now." He announced when they rejoined Maddie and Rayna.

Daphne went and put her arms around Rayna. "Mom, I'm glad you're having Deacon's babies. He's a keeper."

"I think he is too." Rayna hugged her daughter to her. She smiled at Deacon. "I also know that he loves us all a lot."

"Maddie, how do you feel now?" Deacon asked.

"I'm actually excited, dad." Maddie gave him a half smile.

"You know what? I know that you're worried about the time we didn't have together. It weighs on me too sometimes. Let's think of it this way we have the rest of our lives and we get to experience this baby thing together with these new babies. Think about how lucky you are you have two dads who love you and one of them didn't have to." He was being mature about the whole matter. Initially he'd been pissed off, but now his daughter needed him that took a backseat to how he felt.

"You're right, dad." Maddie's smile grew.

Rayna leaned over and kissed him. "I love you."

"I love you too, Ray." Deacon smiled.

"Deacon, where's Elvis?" Daphne asked worriedly.

He leaned down and whispered something in her ear.

Daphne ran off and came back carrying the dog in her arms. "Mom, can Elvis please stay? He's housebroken and he doesn't do anything bad."

"He can stay, but the first time I catch him chewing up something him and Deacon are sleeping out in the back yard." Rayna teased.

"Why am I sleeping in the back yard?" He asked.

"Because you let them sucker you into buying the dog." Rayna smirked.

"You try having three of them ganging up on you and tell me what you do." He defended himself.

"You spoil these girls so rotten and I wouldn't have it any other way." Rayna kissed him just because she could.

"Me either," He agreed and he stole another kiss.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I have nothing, but good things in store. Don't worry there will still be the usual conflict, but nothing that can't be resolved. Until next time please review.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is A Man Who was Gonna Die Young by Eric Church.

* * *

Chapter 8

" _Fresh off sweeping every category she was nominated in at the CMA Awards Queen of Country Music Rayna Jaymes today announced her split from the King of Country himself Luke Wheeler. The question on everyone's minds today is were signs of trouble present just twenty-four short hours ago?"_ The Entertainment Tonight logo flashed on the TV screen and then it cut to footage of Luke and Rayna walking the red carpet together. That segued into footage of Rayna switching seats with Sadie.

" _The even bigger question still is. If she wasn't talking about Wheeler in her last acceptance speech who was the mystery man she made reference to? Could it perhaps be her longtime band leader and former flame Deacon Claybourne?"_ Footage of Deacon leaning in close to whisper in Rayna's ear was shown along with the hug he gave her after she was named Entertainer of the Year.

The footage now cut to the impromptu press conference Rayna had given an hour ago at the end of her driveway.

" _I know that there has been a lot of speculation and conjecture about what's going on today. Luke Wheeler and I have both mutually decided to call off our wedding and end our relationship. No one else had a hand in that. Luke Wheeler and I were friends for a long time before we became romantically involved. We came up in this business together. I just wanted to say that while our love story may be over I have faith that our friendship will endure."_ She turned away from the reporters and walked back into the house.

Bucky turned the TV off. "I've gotta say, Ray, for someone who just went out there and winged it you knocked it out of the park."

"Bucky, that's only half the problem and you know it. I'm twenty weeks pregnant with twins. It's a miracle I hid it this long. I won't be able to hide it much longer. Then that brings us to the Deacon situation. As it stands it looks like I cheated on Luke which I didn't. I'm gonna have to talk to Luke again." Rayna stressed.

"Honey, it's not good for you to be so stressed right now. Let Bucky and I put our heads together and we will come up with a way to spin this." Tandy tried to calm her down.

"Tandy, the only way I can think to spin this is to get Luke to go along with what I say. You didn't see the look in his eyes when I left him. He's not going to do anything that is going to help me. Especially because these are Deacon's children." Rayna sighed.

"Ray, take the win for now. He's going to have to react to that statement. If he does anything, but go along with what you said he's just going to look bitter." Bucky tried to cheer her up.

"I didn't think he'd go after Deacon the way he did. He's imploding right now. I've got to talk to him again. I should just go while Deacon is taking the girls to Teddy's and isn't here to stop me." Rayna got up and grabbed her keys.

"Rayna, I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I agree with Deacon while he's this unpredictable you don't need to be anywhere near him. If you don't care about yourself think about those babies you're carrying." Tandy argued with her sister.

"Words I never thought I'd hear." Deacon came into the room. "Ray, if you need to talk to him so badly I will go with you."

"Deacon, that's probably an even worse idea than her talking to him alone. You two can't handle being around each other without fists flying. I know today wasn't the first time. I heard that he came to the Bluebird and busted you one in the mouth." Bucky had gotten Deacon out of enough trouble to know what was and what wasn't a good idea.

"How'd you know about that?" Deacon asked.

"You're not her bandleader anymore and you're not some drunk anymore, but that doesn't mean I don't still keep tabs on you. People are always going to link you two together. I had to make sure you didn't do anything that was going to blow back on her. And damn it I care about you you're like a younger brother to me. So, I'm telling you if you love her like I know you do you're going to keep her from talking to him and you're not going to talk to him either. Let the team handle this. You two just sit back and enjoy each other and the fact you're going to be parents again." Bucky did his best to lay down the law.

"Alright, Buck, we will stay here. It's not like we can go anywhere else without being hounded by the media." Rayna finally relented.

"Buck, come on let's leave them to decompress. We can go strategize over many drinks at that bar by your place." Tandy suggested.

"Yeah, that's a good idea." Bucky grabbed his coat. "Ray, we need to discuss the remaining tour dates. Not now, but it's something for you to think about."

"Buck, cancel my shows through the next two weeks at least please. I'm only five months pregnant I can still work for a little while. It's just something I need to think over." Rayna just needed a minute to plot out her next move.

"You've got it. You just get some rest." Bucky squeezed her shoulder and walked out with Tandy.

Deacon chewed on his lip for a minute. "Go pack a bag. You don't need anything fancy. If jeans and t-shirts work for you they work for me."

"Deacon, what are you talking about?" Rayna asked.

"The girls are safe with Teddy. I already discussed this with him. He's gonna keep them for a few days. I'm taking you up to the cabin to get away from the circus and to rest. You've been pushing yourself like a dog for months now. It's time to take a break. Let me spoil you for a couple days and then you can come back here recharged." He wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Ok, I'll be right back." She went upstairs to pack a bag and came back down ten minutes later.

He took the bag from her. "Elvis, come on, boy." The god appeared on his heels.

"You and that dog." She couldn't help smiling.

"He's a good boy." He took her hand and led her to his truck.

* * *

An hour later Deacon pulled into the driveway of his cabin. "We should be safe here for a few days. The media never hunts me down up here." He let the dog out of the backseat and grabbed their bags.

"Why do you think this is the first place I always look for you?" Rayna teased.

"Because you know me too well." He unlocked the door, walked in, and flipped the lights on. He'd just been up here not that long ago with the girls so everything was still in order. He threw the bags down by the door.

"You're unpredictable in a predictable way." She laughed.

He turned around and looked at her with a smile on his face. "Hey, Ray?" His eyes darkened with lust.

"Yeah, Deacon?" She could feel the charged current in the atmosphere between them.

"You broke up with Wheeler. We are together now." He took a step towards her.

"We are together now." She agreed.

"Rayna, I'm done talking." His words echoed the ones he had spoke to her that night on the elevator. He pulled her to him and kissed her deeply.

She started undoing the buttons on his flannel shirt. She moaned when his lips moved to her neck. "Oh, Deacon, I've wanted this for so long." She pushed his shirt off his shoulders.

"Me too, baby." He pulled her t-shirt over her head. He nibbled on her ear and kissed his way down her neck to her chest. He unhooked her bra and threw it across the room.

She ran her hands through his hair and moaned loudly when he ran his tongue over her nipple. Pregnancy had made her breasts ultra sensitive. Her hands went to his belt.

He stopped her. "Not here, not like this." He picked her up and carried her into the bedroom. He kicked his boots off along the way.

She ran her tongue around the outside of his ear and made him stagger slightly. She giggled when he tossed her gently on the bed.

He stripped out of the rest of his clothes then set to work on hers. He pulled her pants off followed by her underwear. He climbed on top of her and kissed her passionately as he slid into her. Nothing had ever felt more right in his life.

She lightly raked her nails up and down his back. She wrapped her legs around his waist to pull him deeper inside her. This had been more than worth the wait.

"I love you so much." He stroked in and out of her skillfully.

"I love you too." If she hadn't known before she knew in that moment that she would never want another man other than him. Between the anticipation and her pregnancy hormones it didn't take long at all for her to tumble over the edge.

He didn't hold out too much longer than she did. He collapsed on top of her afterwards careful to keep his weight off of her belly.

* * *

A few days later Deacon had Maddie and Daphne gathered in his living room. "I have something serious that I would like to talk to you girls about." He sat perched on the edge of his chair.

"Since you basically kidnapped us against our will and are keeping us here go ahead and talk, dad." Maddie laughed.

"What is it, Deacon?" Daphne asked him.

Deacon handed each of them a jewelry box and he held one in his hand. He opened the box in his hand and revealed a pretty good sized diamond ring. He hadn't had any luck with the other ring he tried to give Rayna so he figured he would get a new one. "I know that this is soon, but I've waited a long time to be with your momma. You can say no to this question or tell me to wait and I will respect that. But, can I marry your momma?"

"Dad, of course you can." Maddie squealed.

"Totally, Deacon. That is awesome!" Daphne bounced up and down.

"You two can go on and open those boxes I gave you." He grinned at them.

Maddie opened her box inside was a silver guitar pick necklace with her name engraved on it. "Thank you, dad, I love it."

Inside of Daphne's box was a silver music note with her name engraved on it. "Deacon, thank you. This is so cool."

"You girls are welcome. Now I have a proposal in mind we just have to wait a little while, but I need your help to plan it. If you're up for it." He wanted them to feel included from the start.

"Tell us your plan and we will be happy to help." Maddie was over the moon.

"I'll help anyway you want." Daphne agreed with her sister.

* * *

"You've got to be kidding me. You would think that these people would have something else to write about by now." Rayna said with disgust as she looked at People Magazine. On the cover was a picture of her, Luke, and Deacon. With the headline Did King of Country lose Queen to the Bishop? They had played the chess metaphor for all it was worth.

"Luke, constantly has his face in the media. Reporters basically know what he has for breakfast everyday. This isn't going to go away that easily. He's been partying and carousing around town while you've been holed up in the boonies with Deacon. I'm not saying that that wasn't exactly what you needed, but now you're playing catch up. With no one to confirm or deny the rumors they have spread like wildfire." Tandy took the magazine away from her.

"Tandy's right, Ray. What you need is a public appearance. I know that you're reluctant to, because you're starting to show, but I think I can get wardrobe to take care of that. You're gonna have to announce this pregnancy sooner rather than later. Have you decided what you're going to do about the tour?" Bucky asked. As messy as Rayna's life got sometimes he was still thankful every day that he wasn't Glen and he didn't have to deal with Juliette.

"Bucky, go ahead and cancel the rest of my tour dates. I know that leaves us in a lurch with Juliette out too. We still have Sadie and Deacon. My boyfriend thank God always has material ready to go at all times. He's laid four songs down on track we are gonna release those as singles. We still have singles from my album that we can release we aren't in trouble." Rayna replied.

"Babe, you can relax when it comes to that. Your album sales are climbing off the charts. You can keep the label afloat off of that for now." Tandy assured her.

"I can't just relax. I can't let that smug son of a bitch be right. He thinks that everything I've accomplished is because of him. I'm not going to have that." Rayna maintained stubbornly.

"You sounded exactly like daddy just now." Tandy had an amused smirk on her face.

"Ray, you have another problem. Luke's people aren't backing down about sticking you with the bill for this." Bucky informed her.

"Bucky, what do I pay these expensive lawyers for if they can't get me out of this?" Rayna demanded.

"Honestly it could be cheaper just to pay for it than to pay the lawyer's fees." Bucky advised her.

"I'm not paying a damn red cent for this. Bucky, tell them to work harder." Rayna fired back.

"You're not gonna wanna hear this…" Tandy began.

"Tandy, don't you dare even suggest it." Rayna's eyes flashed with fire.

"You could ask daddy to help. He has a knack for getting people to do what he wants them to do." Tandy finished her sentence.

"I'll consider it, but only after the lawyers have one more go at his people." Rayna hated to ask her father for anything.

"You've barely seen him since he got out of the hospital. He's starting to get a little antsy. It'll give him something to do and hopefully keep him out of trouble." Tandy said one last thing before she let the subject drop.

"Buck, here's a thought. What if we do a digital album something small like three or four duets from me and Deacon?" Rayna suggested.

"That's a really great idea. I'll get in touch with iTunes and see about doing an exclusive with them. I'll get back to you on that." Bucky added it to his to-do list.

"So what do you plan to do about the fact that you look like a recluse? It makes you look like you have something to hide. It's not going to help make people think that you didn't cheat on Luke with Deacon." Tandy asked.

"Deacon has a gig at the Bluebird tonight. I didn't want to come back today, but he reminded me that I made him book this a few weeks ago. I wasn't going to go with him, but I can." Rayna replied thoughtfully.

"That would be a good thing. I'll get wardrobe to come up with something to hide your bump. How are you three feeling by the way?" Bucky inquired.

"I'm hungry all the time and I pee a lot. Other than that I'm good. We have an appointment tomorrow to see if Deacon's hell spawn are gonna cooperate and let us find out the sex." Rayna smiled fondly.

* * *

Deacon opened his set at the Bluebird that night with Sideshow. He knew that Rayna had heard the song before, but he wanted to play it for her again anyway, because he wasn't the sideshow anymore he was the man with her. He was wearing his usual flannel and denim motif. He smiled every time he looked up and met Rayna's eyes. She was absolutely gorgeous and glowing. He almost wanted to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't imagining any of this that she was really his.

"I'm gonna play somethin' new for ya'll tonight." He announced before he played the opening licks to his new song. _"I like fast cars and sharp dreams chase a lot of crazy things left behind my share of broken pieces. This morning I turned thirty-six and when you just remember half of it. You wonder how you outlived Hank or Jesus."_

" _I put rage in the river and the roll in the thunder, but you kept me from going under when that current got to heavy. I always thought I'd be a heap of metal in cloud of smoke foot stuck to the pedal. Sold for parts like a junkyard rusted out Chevy. Fear I've had none, what the hell made you want to love a man who was gonna die young?"_

He looked at Rayna as he sang. He'd written this song while they were up at the cabin. He had been watching her sleep one morning and she was arguably the most beautiful person he'd ever laid eyes on. It made him wonder what she saw in a drunk like him.

" _In the mirror I saw my surprise. Who knew gray hairs like to hide on a head that didn't think he'd live past thirty? If I make it thirty more it's the brown that you'll be looking for as you run your fingers through it and say slow down honey."_ At one point in time he hadn't thought that he'd live to be an old man with the way that he drank and the stupid decisions that he made.

Rayna watched him as he played with nothing, but love in her eyes.

" _I put rage in the river and the roll in the thunder, but you kept me from going under when that current got to heavy. I always thought I'd be a heap of metal in cloud of smoke foot stuck to the pedal. Sold for parts like a junkyard rusted out Chevy. Fear I've had none, what the hell made you want to love a man who was gonna die young?"_ He caught her eyes again and winked at her.

" _Call it intuition or call it crazy I just thought by now I'd be pushing up daisies, but I'll gladly stick around if we're together. So baby when you bow your head tonight can you tell the lord I changed my mind? And with you I'd like to live forever."_ He played the closing chords to a hearty round of applause from the audience.

"Ladies and gentleman, tonight there is a very special friend of mine in the audience and I'm gonna need her to come up here and join for this next one." He motioned for Rayna to come join him. "Yeah, I'm talkin' 'bout you, come on, Ray, you know you want to."

Rayna stood up and walked to the stage. She thanked God for the flowing loose black blouse she wore. Even she couldn't tell that she was pregnant. Her stylist was a miracle worker. "Lord, Deacon, you are too much sometimes. You're the reason that rumors get started about us." She was about to stick it to Luke in a big way. She'd seen the tabloid photos of him kissing on random women he'd picked up in bars. If he didn't give a damn about his imagine then she sure as hell didn't.

"There's also rumors floating around about me and Sadie. We just created a lot buzz between the two of us the last week. What do you say we really give them somethin' to talk 'bout?" Deacon played the opening chords for No One Will Ever Love You.

" _Don't you try to tell me someone's waiting they're not waiting for you. Oh and don't you try to tell me that you're wanted that you're needed cause it's not true. I know why you're lonely it's time you knew it too. No one will ever love you, no one will ever love you, no one will ever love you like I do."_ Rayna stared deeply into his eyes.

" _Why you always looking for the limelight. Ain't you satisfied with me? Oh for once why don't get down off your high heels you're no big deal can't you see?"_ Deacon stared back into her eyes.

" _I know why you're lonely it's time you knew it too. No one will ever love you, no one will ever love you, no one will ever love you like I do."_ They sang in unison.

" _I'm all you got."_ She put her hand on his knee.

" _I'm all you'll ever need."_ He leaned in closer to her.

" _I'm all you'll ever have."_ Their foreheads were almost touching now. _"No one will ever love you, no one will ever love, no one will ever love you like I do. Like I do. Like I do."_

Rayna put her hand on his cheek and kissed him slowly, but with undeniable passion. "I think that puts those rumors to rest don't you?"

"I'd say so, Ray." Deacon agreed.

The audience erupted with applause.

* * *

Bucky groaned as his phone went off. "Oh, I swear those two are gonna be the death of me."

"What is it, Buck?" Tandy rolled over to face him.

"Your sister, who else?" Bucky showed her his phone. On it there was a picture of Rayna and Deacon kissing at the Bluebird underneath the caption _The Kiss Heard Round the World._

"She's stupid when it comes to him, but that was a good PR move. Bad PR is still good PR." Tandy sighed. She just didn't get what Rayna's fascination was with him.

"I know that you don't like the guy, but he loves your little sister and he always has." He pointed out to her.

"So did Teddy and Luke for that matter and you see how that turned out." She rubbed her temples.

"The difference was she didn't love them or any other man for that matter. It's Deacon or no one for her. She makes less messes with her life when she's with him." He replied.

"Our father is going to be apoplectic, but I'll be damned if I don't think that would be an overreaction. He just seems different than I remember Deacon being." She just wanted what was best for Rayna.

"I've known drunk Deacon and I've known sober Deacon and he's not other of those Deacons right now. He's grownup sober Deacon. He's a husband and a father and he's everything I've ever wanted him to be for her." He put his hand on her hip.

"She seems happier than I've ever seen her that's for sure." She had to admit that much.

"Exactly, she's gonna be fine. You should let me worry about you." He kissed her to stop her from saying anything else.

* * *

Rayna was sitting on an exam table wearing a gown when Deacon walked in. "It's about time you got up here."

He was slightly out of breath. He wore a dark baseball that he took off. "Jesus, Ray, I felt like the same kid who used to sneak into your room at Lamar's house. I had to sneak in the back of the building and come up the stairwell to make sure no one saw me." He scowled playfully at the amused look on her face.

"You'll always be the boy who used to sneak into my room and risk my daddy's wrath to me." She took his hand and pulled him closer to her. "You should definitely kiss me now."

"I'd be happy to oblige." He dipped his head and planted a lingering kiss on her lips.

"Mmm, thank you, I missed you while you were busy sneaking up here like a rebellious teenage boy." She smacked his ass teasingly.

"Don't start something here in the OBGYN's office, woman." He grinned at her.

"I'll start whatever I want to start wherever I want and we both know you'll go along with it. I have history on my side to back that up." She smirked back at him.

Her doctor came in a few minutes later. Dr. Monroe was probably in her mid to late forties. She had delivered both Maddie and Daphne.

"Rayna, do I need to tell you that you should have been to see me before now? Multiple births can be difficult and that is compounded by your age. So far everything with the pregnancy is normal, but if you don't do what you're supposed to do that can be subject to change." Dr. Monroe spoke to her like they were old friends. "Ok, end of lecture. This has to be the infamous Deacon Claybourne."

"That's me." Deacon looked around awkwardly.

"He's the father." Rayna clarified.

"Let's take a look at these babies and see how they are doing. Rayna, go ahead and lay back. Dad, you can stand up by her head and hold her hand." Dr. Monroe got the ultrasound ready.

Deacon gripped Rayna's hand tightly in his and she smiled up at him encouragingly.

Dr. Monroe squirted the gel on Rayna's stomach and began the ultrasound. "I see two perfectly healthy twenty week old fetuses everything is on target for where it should be and their heartbeats are strong." She reported. "Do you want to know the sexes?"

"Up to you, babe." Rayna told Deacon when he looked at her to answer.

"Yeah, we wanna know." Deacon smiled excitedly.

Dr. Monroe moved the wand around and studied the babies. "Congratulations, you have two baby boys."

"Do you hear that, Ray? Boys, we have two sons." A tear slid down Deacon's cheek.

"We're having two little boys, daddy." Rayna smiled through the tears that were rolling down her face. She never thought she'd get to have this moment with him.

He stared at the screen in awe. "Those are my sons. Wow, this is real. I'm gonna have sons to go with my perfect girls." He leaned down and kissed her. "Thank you, I love you more than I can say."

"No, thank you, I'm happier than I've been since I don't know when." Rayna kissed him again.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it and our able to keep up with the fast pace. I don't believe in drawing things out for too terribly long. I like to get to the point and move on to the next surprise. Next chapter I'm going to make Lamar earn his keep and be useful like I said before I kept him alive for a reason. Until next time please review.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 9

Scarlett walked into the Highway 65 office. She was supposed to be meeting her uncle there, but of course she didn't see him anywhere. She looked around for a moment confused.

"Scarlett, you here to see your uncle?" Rayna smiled and put her arm around the younger woman's shoulders.

"I am, he said to meet him here." Scarlett replied.

"He's back in the writers' room. He's really excited that you decided to come today and I am too." Rayna led her back to where Deacon was.

Deacon sat playing around on his guitar and Elvis laid at his feet. Sadie sat across from him.

"Hey, look who's here, Deacon." Rayna pointed at Scarlett.

"Hey, Sweetie, it's good to see you finally took me up on my offer. I know that you two met the night of the CMA's but let me introduce you properly. Sadie Stone, this is my niece Scarlett O'Connor. Scarlett, this is Sadie." Deacon introduced them.

Sadie stood and shook Scarlett's hand. "It's nice to see you again. Your uncle talks about you a lot."

"It's good to see you too. You can only believe half of what he says." Scarlett blushed.

"Don't be so modest. Scarlett is a pretty great songwriter too." Rayna chimed in.

"Hopefully she can help us come up with some new stuff today. Since our fearless leader decided to add a digital album on top of the album she already wants me to put out I need more songs." Deacon laughed.

"Deacon, have we not had the discussion about how it's not wise to piss me off right now?" Rayna asked him in a conversational tone.

"We've had the discussion, but I can't help myself you know that." Deacon grinned at her.

Rayna bent and kissed the top of his head. "I have a meeting to get to just try your best to be productive today."

"You sure you don't want me to come with you?" Deacon asked just to make sure.

"I'm positive that I don't want you to come with me. The only way this meeting could be any worse than it's already going to be is if you're there. I love you, but that is way more stress than I need right now." Rayna told him.

"Alright, call me when you're done." Deacon knew it was better not to push the issue.

"I will, I'll see you later." Rayna leaned over further and pressed a quick kiss to his lips.

"I love you be safe." Deacon pulled her down for one more kiss before he let her go.

"They make you sick with how cute they are don't they? The first time I met Deacon he showed up at Rayna's hotel room with a dozen roses and they weren't even together at that point." Sadie commented.

"This is a lot better than watching him moon dog over her." Scarlett retorted laughingly.

"You two just keep it up with me. Elvis and I will leave you to write alone without our company." Deacon took the dog with him everywhere he could.

"Uncle Deacon, why is the dog with you?" Scarlett asked him.

"Because Ray is convinced if we leave him alone at the house he is gonna chew on something. And she won't admit to this, but she likes having him around he's kinda become the mascot around here." Deacon informed her. He reached down and patted the dog's head.

* * *

Wyatt Industries had weathered the storm of having the President and CEO not only being jailed, but also almost dying of heart attack well. Business was thriving again and things were operating like normal.

Lamar sat behind his desk wearing his trademark suit and tie. He'd just hung up a phone call when someone walked into his office. "Rayna, finally gracing me with your presence I see. I would have thought you'd wait at least another year given that you know my feelings about Deacon Claybourne."

"Daddy, I didn't come to fight with you. I do know how you feel about Deacon and as with most things I feel differently." Rayna sat in the chair that was across from his desk.

"Then why did you come here?" Lamar questioned.

"Because, I need your help. Luke is trying to nail me for the cost of this wedding. I've had my lawyers talk to his lawyers several times and they won't budge. I can afford to pay the bill that's not the problem it's the principle." Rayna told him bluntly.

Lamar's mouth twisted into a smirk. "Well, listen to that there is some Wyatt in you. I'll take care of it I have no other really pressing matters to deal with."

"There's more," Rayna was going to take the chance that he would be able to help her with the other part of her problem.

"There's always more. What is it?" Lamar asked in an easy manner.

"I'm pregnant and Deacon is the father. The problem is I need Luke to say we were broken up when I slept with him. Which we were or it wouldn't have happened. He's not going to be inclined to do that because he feels much the same way you do about Deacon." Rayna braced herself for his reaction. That was part of the reason she'd done this in the office and not at his house.

"You really learn your lessons the hard way. You sure you don't want to go crawling back to Luke Wheeler while you have the chance? Deacon has it in him to be great, but his personality doesn't allow for that. He'll never be anything more than a screw up." Lamar didn't have to change anything, but the inflection of his voice to get his point across.

"You don't like Deacon, but you're not gonna talk to him or about him that way. He's the father of three of my children and you're just gonna have to accept that. I won't keep you from the girls they love you for whatever reason I don't always understand. But, if you want to be any part of your new grandsons' lives then you are gonna have to learn to at the very least be civil to their father. I don't know why I even bothered coming to you like this. I should have known that you'd react this way." Rayna stood up quickly.

Lamar jumped to his feet with surprising grace and speed and put himself between Rayna and the doorway. He took her hand. "Just wait a minute. Grandsons? Two boys? You're pregnant with my grandsons?" Normally he didn't come undone like that, but the thought of finally having some male heirs had him highly excited.

"Yes, daddy, they are boys." Rayna couldn't have sworn to it, but she thought she saw her father's eyes tear up.

Lamar smiled a genuine smile for a change. "Then for their sake I will handle this. Wow, I can't believe two boys."

"Tandy assures me that you have your ways of taking care of things and you were the first person that I thought of when it became apparent that I couldn't handle this on my own." She told him.

"I have my ways I don't want you to worry about this. Everything is taken care of already. You did the right thing by coming to me." He put a hand on each of her shoulders. "You just go take care of yourself and those grandsons of mine."

"I will," Rayna started to walk out. "And, daddy, thank you."

* * *

"Tandy, I think almost dying has made your father soft." Rayna walked into her sister's office.

"He's your father too. And why, what did he do now?" Tandy looked up from the paperwork she was doing.

"I went to talk to him about that stuff with Luke like you suggested and he said he would take care of it. Well I had to tell him that I'm pregnant and Deacon's the father. After he got over his whole Deacon isn't good enough for me spiel it looked like he was about to cry." Rayna informed her.

"Say, what you will about the man he's a good grandfather. His fathering skills leave a lot to be desired, but he loves those girls and he shows it in a way that he never showed us." Tandy replied.

"I know, but I think he may really be trying. He told me he would take care of everything that I just needed to worry about taking care of myself and his grandsons." Rayna sat down on the couch.

"He'd do just about anything for you right now. You're giving him two grandsons. He's always been partial to you anyway, because you remind him of mom and out of the two of us you're more like him than I am that's why you two fight so much." Tandy took a seat next to her sister.

"What are you talking about? If he favors anyone it's you. I just butt heads with him non-stop." Rayna disputed.

"Your first album wasn't getting a lot of radio play. Daddy had been keeping tabs on your career he has fliers and stuff from every venue you've ever played. When he heard this he went around and started paying the local stations to play your songs. Edgehill just didn't have the juice to make that happen at the time. He loves you and he's prouder of you than he has ever let on." Tandy put her arm around her.

"No way, he did that for me without expecting something in return. I know how that man works." Rayna scoffed.

"He did that's why he keeps that copy of your first album on the wall in his dressing room." Tandy countered.

"He couldn't just tell me. He had to let me think the worst of him. I'll tell you having a relationship with him can be tiresome. He can't let me know when he does something nice because he's my father and wants me to be happy, but he can basically blackmail me." Rayna sighed.

"That's our daddy love him or hate him and I've felt both ways about him." Tandy shrugged. There was no use trying to decipher Lamar's mind.

"I have work to do. I can't dwell on what daddy is gonna do to handle this." Rayna groaned.

"Speaking of work there's something you need to see, but Bucky is gonna handle that." Tandy wasn't touching the latest issue that had cropped up.

"You know I abuse your boyfriend enough you should cut him some slack." Rayna teased.

"This is me cutting him slack I'm letting you abuse him like always." Tandy didn't make her usual denial that he wasn't her boyfriend.

Bucky stuck his head in the door. "Ray, I got the advanced copy of the Rolling Stone."

"How bad is it?" Rayna asked.

"It's not bad at all there was some crap in there about the supposedly lavish lifestyle you were living with Luke, but there's no mention of the Maddie and Colt thing." He handed the copy to her.

"Then what's the problem, Buck?" Rayna opened the magazine and thumbed through it.

"They made a way bigger deal out of the Deacon stuff than you hoped they would and he's gonna be pissed when he sees this." Bucky told her.

"Oh, pissed in the understatement of the year. I'm just gonna tell him not to read it. I told him that I gave them us. They took this way out of context. When does this come out?" Rayna was starting to regret doing that article.

"This comes out tomorrow. They already printed in there that you're with Deacon now at the end of the article." Bucky replied.

"What's the big deal? What's Deacon gonna freak out about? You chose him you're with him this shouldn't matter." Tandy didn't see what the big deal was.

"The big deal is I said a couple of intensely personal things that he isn't gonna like at all. I didn't even realize until just now that it slipped out. I was protecting Maddie and he understands that, but that doesn't mean he's gonna be happy that I said it. Like I said I'll just tell him not to read it and hope for the best." Rayna sighed.

"Another issue that's not actually an issue, but Elvis is following me around. Deacon is in the studio with Will Lexington right now. Don't ask me what's going on there because I don't know. Anyway the point is that he left Scarlett and Sadie alone in the writer's room and it is pretty amazing." Bucky reported.

"That's what he was hoping for he wants her to come out of her shell again and get back on the horse. Bucky, you feed the dog when you feed the dog he takes that to mean you want to be friends. I have no idea what he's doing in the studio with him either. He just told me not to worry he has a plan. That's typically when I worry. Buck, schedule some time where I have nothing else to do and I can just write with Deacon without any interruptions." Rayna ran a hand through her hair.

"You live with the man why do you need Bucky to schedule you time with him?" Tandy arched her eyebrow.

"I didn't mean that quite the way it sounded. Buck knew what I meant don't be a smart ass." Rayna elbowed her sister playfully.

"I got you, Ray, I'll clear a morning for the two of you to come in here and write without anyone bugging you. I know that it has to be here at the office or nothing is ever gonna get done. Writing will never just be writing when it comes to you." Bucky knew those two better than just about anyone else.

"Thank you, Buck, you know us too well. If we write at home we will never accomplish anything." Rayna smiled at him.

* * *

"Do you care to tell me just where the hell you get off summoning me into your office like I'm some sort of wayward child?" Luke marched into Lamar's office with a scowl on his face.

"Mr. Wheeler, thank you for making time in your very busy schedule to meet with me. We have important things to discuss." Lamar didn't bother to offer him a seat.

"What could we possibly have to talk about?" Luke crossed his arms over his chest.

"Let's talk about this wedding that you seem to think my daughter is going to pay for. That won't be happening. You like to flash your money around you can pay for it. Call it your penance for being an egotistical jackass." Lamar told him bluntly. He wasted no time beating around the bush.

"And if I don't?" Luke challenged him.

Lamar tapped a file that was laying on his desk. "Let's just say that the contents of this file will become very public and you don't want that."

"You're bluffing you've got nothing on me." Luke scoffed.

Lamar opened the folder and there was a picture of a much younger Luke kissing on some blonde woman. "What I have here is a picture proving that you weren't exactly faithful to the former Mrs. Wheeler. You know how the media likes to speculate about things they may get the idea that that's why my daughter called the wedding off. That's up to you."

Luke's face paled. It was no secret that he hadn't been an angel and that's why his first wife divorced him, but even she didn't know the true extent of his antics. He couldn't afford to have it come out now. "Where did you get those?"

"It doesn't matter where I got them or how I got them. What matters is that I have them and unless you want this to come out you will do exactly as I say." Lamar countered.

"What do you want from me?" Luke asked.

"I want you to pay for that wedding. I'm sure you'll be able to get most of your money back anyway. At some point Rayna is going to release a statement and I want you to confirm everything she says. If you do that for me I will make sure this stays buried." Lamar leveled with him.

"That's it? That's all I gotta do?" Luke raised an eyebrow.

"That's it. I don't want to cause you any trouble anymore than I want you causing my daughter trouble." Lamar shrugged.

"You have yourself a deal then." Luke agreed to his terms.

* * *

For the hell of it Deacon had decided to read Rayna's advanced copy of Rolling Stone while she was in the shower. He figured it wouldn't be too bad. She had already warned him about it the night she'd done it and there wouldn't be any surprises. Boy had he been wrong.

"Hey, babe, what are you doing?" Rayna asked as she came out of the bathroom toweling her hair dry.

"I just thought that I'd read your advanced copy of Rolling Stone and now thinkin' back on it I wish I hadn't." Deacon threw the magazine down on the bedside table.

"Deacon, I was gonna tell you not to read that. They took my words and they twisted them. Anyway I told you that I had to do that to protect Maddie and you said you understood." Rayna pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I do understand that you had to protect Maddie. I get that and I'm one hundred percent behind that. I also know that they twisted your words. What I don't like is that you gave them deeply intimate things that were supposed to stay between us. That's my problem with this whole thing. You took things that were supposed to be ours and you sold them." He got up and started pacing the room.

"Babe, come on, don't do this. It's a stupid magazine article it's not worth fighting over." She pleaded with him.

"Did you really have to tell the whole world that the first time I proposed to you I got so drunk afterwards that I couldn't remember? Did you need to tell them that I would get so drunk that you'd lose track of me for sometimes days at a time? Did anyone need to know that I basically became your dutiful man servant after you got married? Or that I gave my own daughter her first guitar lesson when she was two and I didn't know she was mine?" He ran his hand across the stubble on his cheeks.

"That was a few small things Deacon that wasn't everything that we've ever shared together not by a long shot. I had to give them something that was worth running or they would have gone with the Maddie and Colt stuff. I'm not gonna apologize for protecting our daughter now or back then." Her voice rose.

"You didn't even give me the damn chance, Rayna. You stopped believing in me. I get that you were scared and I was unstable, you didn't have to let me see her and you didn't have to leave her alone with me, but damn it you could have told me that she was mine and maybe just maybe I could have changed." He turned to her his eyes blazing.

"Is that really what you think? That I stopped believing in you? That's is the furthest thing from the truth that I've ever heard. I never once stopped believing in you even when it seemed like I did. I would have been there waiting for you to get out of rehab the fifth time just like I was the other four times had I not been pregnant. I had to think about her I had to put her first. She had to come before both of us." She stared him down just as hard as he was staring at her.

"Yes that's what I think. If you'd believed in me you would have told me the truth. It felt like you put me out like a cigarette. I was dead inside for years and then just when I thought I got you back I found out you kept our daughter from me." The rage in his eyes turned to sadness.

"Don't you get it? I didn't just do it to you, I did it to myself too. I was wrong, Deacon, and I know I was wrong. But there were times I thought that you loved whiskey more than you loved me and I never wanted her to feel that way." A tear made it's way down her face.

Deacon crossed the room and took her into his arms. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I ever made you feel that way. I love you and that will never change."

"I'm sorry too, baby. The hardest thing I've ever had to do was keep her from you. That's why you had to know as soon as I could tell you that the boys are ours." She cried harder.

He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her down on his lap. He was crying too. "It's ok, baby, it's ok. We are together now that's all that matters."

They just sat there and held each other for what seemed like forever. It was something that they needed to do. Sure they had talked about this before, but not like this. They'd both been honest and vulnerable with each other. It was what they needed to move past it. Finally, after a little while they both stared into each other's eyes. They both recognized the look the other was giving.

"I'll get a pen and paper," Rayna got up off his lap.

"I'll get the guitar." Deacon went to the corner of the room and picked up his guitar. Some of their best music had been made after a fight. They didn't necessarily record it all, but it helped them and that was all that mattered.

* * *

The next morning Rayna and Deacon were in the recording studio bright and early. They hadn't slept much the night before between writing and taking breaks to make love that didn't leave much room for sleep. They both sat on stools in the recording booth facing each other. The instrumentals they had laid down earlier played in the background.

" _She put him out like the burning end of a midnight cigarette. She broke his heart he spent his whole life trying to forget. We watched him drink his pain away a little at a time, but he never could get drunk enough to get her off his mind until the night."_ Deacon took the lead for a change. Very few of their songs started with him singing and it was a nice change of pace. If they were to truly be partners this time around they had to share.

" _He put that bottle to his head and pulled the trigger and finally drank away her memory. Life is short, but this time it was bigger than the strength he had to get up off his knees. We found him with his face down in the pillow with a note that said I'll love her til I die. And when we buried him beneath the willow. The angels sang a whiskey lullaby. La-la, la-la, la, la. La-la, la-la, la, la. La-la, la-la, la, la."_ They sang together.

" _The rumors flew, but nobody knew how much she blamed herself. For years and years she tried to hide the whiskey on her breath. She finally drank her pain away a little at a time, but she never could get drunk enough to get him off her mind until the night."_ Rayna sang. They had spent the whole night talking about their feelings and it had all spilled out in this song. They figured it was a manifestation of their love and everything they had been through and that made it perfect for their duet album.

" _She put that bottle to her head and pulled the trigger and finally drank away his memory. Life is short, but this time it was bigger than the strength she had to get up off her knees. We found her with her face down in the pillow clinging to his picture for dear life. We laid her next to him beneath the willow while the angels sand a whiskey. La-la, la-la, la, la. La-la, la-la, la, la. La-la, la-la, la, la. La-la, la-la, la, la. La-la, la-la, la, la."_ They finished together holding hands.

Deacon removed his headphones. "Ray, I think we still got it." He grinned at her.

"Honey, that has never been our problem. You and I make awesome music together." Rayna took her headphones off and leaned over to kiss him.

"Sounds great, Ray, wanna let Deacon play around with this while you get to that meeting you have today?" Bucky pressed the intercom button.

"Yeah, Buck, I'll be right out." Rayna replied.

"Babe, you know you don't have to do this alone right?" Deacon's blue eyes clouded with concern.

"I know that, but I need to do this alone. It will be so much worse if you go in there." She gave him another quick kiss to reassure him that everything was going to be ok.

"Ok, I trust you." He looked around to make sure no one was paying attention and he rubbed her belly. "Boys, you be good for your momma today. Daddy loves you."

"Deacon, they come from us I don't expect them to behave." She laughed and walked to the door of the booth.

* * *

Luke and Rayna were meeting face to face for the first time since she'd broken their engagement. To say that things were tense would be an understatement. The exes stared each other down.

"We are gonna drop the whole payment for the wedding thing and our camp will take care of that. She returned the ring and it's as simple as that." Luke's manager Jimmy said.

"Good, we will accept that. We managed to kill the Honeymoon Tour and there is nothing else to worry about from there. From where I stand it looks like things have been cleanly severed." Bucky replied. He didn't know what Lamar had said or done, but he was grateful just the same.

"A clean break that's just what we need in this situation." Jimmy agreed.

"That concludes our business together then." Bucky said.

"Can ya'll give us the room for a minute?" Rayna asked sweetly.

Jimmy looked a Luke for confirmation.

"Go on," Luke waved him away.

"Ray, I'm right outside if you need me." Bucky squeezed her shoulder. And he meant right outside. He planned to stand by the door just in case she needed him.

"What do you want, Rayna?" Luke sighed.

"I wanted to tell you this before you heard it from the news because I'm gonna have to announce it soon. I'm pregnant and there is no chance that you're the father Deacon is." She blurted out.

"How can you be so sure of that?" He arched his eyebrow.

"Because when I got pregnant you and I weren't sleeping together. You were out on tour you said you needed time. I wasn't just going to sit around and wait for you to decide you'd had enough time and were ready. It wasn't fair to expect me to just hang out in limbo like that." She told him.

"Why are you telling me this?" He knew that she had to be angling for something.

"When I announce my pregnancy I'm going to need you to go on the record saying that I didn't cheat on you. That we didn't know that I was pregnant and when we figured out Deacon was the father we broke up." She explained what she needed from him.

"Consider it done." It wasn't like he had another choice. Lamar had him by the balls. It didn't make it hurt any less though. "For what it's worth I did love you and that's why I reacted the way that I did when I found out Deacon is Maddie's father. I felt like you didn't trust me enough to let me in."

"I know you did, but it just wasn't meant to be. We are way too different and we want different things. I do care about you though and I hate that I hurt you. That wasn't my truth to tell that was Maddie's and Deacon's." She pointed out logically.

He stood up and put his hat on. "I'll see you around, Rayna. Have a nice life." He turned his back on her and walked out of the room.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. It was more of a filler until we get to the next set of big stuff that I have planned. I always felt like Deacon and Rayna never really and truly covered the whole Maddie's paternity thing and that he forgave her way too easily. So I had to throw that scene in there and really start to put it to bed. Until next time please review.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is Just As I am by Brantley Gilbert.

* * *

Chapter 10

" _You said come just as you are your skin and bones smell like bar. You sure you want me there this way? Ok, well I'm on my way. I'll grab this bottle just in case I'm just too ashamed to pray. I'm bringing this burden to you now yeah the prodigal son returns the only way that I know how the only that I know how."_ Deacon was on stage at the Bluebird.

"Is this the new single?" Tandy asked Rayna. They had rented the Bluebird for the night to have an early Christmas party for Highway 65.

"I don't know yet. So far it sounds pretty good." Rayna replied.

" _I'm gonna drive my steel horse down to the altar put my hands on the tank and pray. Lord I ain't got much to offer, but I ain't tryin' to die this way. So may this bottle be the body and this bourbon be the blood. If I pour it out will take my offering give me the strength to never pick it up. Here I stand just as I am."_ He'd written this song after that Rolling Stone article had come out.

"I say let him go for it. Deacon is more of a ballad guy." Sadie chimed in.

"She would agree with him she's one of what Bucky refers to as Deacon Claybourne's Wayward Musicians." Tandy joked.

"Is this what you and Bucky talk about in your spare time?" Rayna asked.

" _You know most folks don't understand that I'm talkin' 'bout pourin' out my best friend. Damn, it sounds so sad, but that's how it is. And that's why it's gotta end. Lord I've tried it by myself forget my pride I need your help."_ This song was intensely personal and right in Deacon's wheelhouse.

"Don't worry about what Bucky and I do with our spare time. I don't ask you those questions about you and Deacon. Mostly because it doesn't take a rocket scientist to know what you two do." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"I just want to know about Deacon Claybourne's Wayward Musicians." Sadie said.

"You, Will, Scarlett, Gunnar, and Avery." Tandy supplied.

"Seriously, you and Bucky need a hobby." Rayna shook her head.

" _I'm gonna drive my steel horse down to the altar put my hands on the tank and pray. Lord I ain't got much to offer, but I ain't tryin' to die this way. So may this bottle be the body and this bourbon be the blood. If I pour it out will take my offering give me the strength to never pick it up. Here I stand just as I am."_

" _So fill that river full of tears and whiskey, blood I've spilled and the wars I've waged. A thousand love lost heart broken memories, scars on my heart and skin I'm wearing raise me up a brand new man so I can face this world just as I am. You said come just as you are skin and bones and broken heart. You kept and here I stand born again just as I am."_ Deacon walked off the stage to join everyone else.

"Deacon, being happy looks good on you." Juliette caught him before he made his way over to Rayna.

"Thanks, I find it pretty agreeable too." He smiled at her. "How you feeling?"

"Like a blimp. This little girl is taking everything out of me. The only things I can do are sit around or stand." Juliette replied.

"Well, if you ever need a friend you know where to find me." He offered.

"I may just take you up on that." She agreed.

"So, ladies, what did ya'll think?" He asked when he finally walked over to the table where Rayna, Tandy, and Sadie sat.

"I think that's a better single than A Man Who Was Gonna Die Young." Tandy told him.

"Up to you, Babe, they are both great songs." Rayna left the decision up to him.

"I don't think you're capable of writing a bad song." Sadie added.

"Thanks, ya'll." He smiled at them.

"Deacon, look at how content those girls of ours are right now." Rayna pointed with her eyes over to where Daphne stood glued to Scarlett's side while they talked to Gunnar and Maddie was talking to Will and Avery.

"I see them they are just soaking it all up." Deacon laughed. "Ray, what do you say we go take a trip down memory lane while those two are occupied?" He asked after he shared a look with Tandy. Those two were even getting along better these days.

"Sure," Rayna took his offered hand. "Excuse us for a minute."

* * *

Deacon led her down the back hall and they looked at the pictures on the wall. They were several of them at various different ages. Finally, he opened the door to the dressing room. "The first time I ever laid eyes on you it was in this room. Watty had come to me and said 'Deacon, I need a favor from you. There's this girl she's the prettiest little thing you've ever seen and she has a voice like an angel, but she can't play the guitar to save her life.' So I came on back and the moment I saw you I knew that I was gonna love you for the rest of my life whether I wanted to or not."

"I've loved you since the first time I saw you and the first time I ever heard you play a note on the guitar." She replied.

"Ray, I have something I need to ask you. And it's not a big deal so don't have to answer now and you can say no." Now that the moment was on him he was nervous.

"You can ask me anything you know that." She told him.

He took the ring out of his pocket and got down on one knee. "Ray, I love you and it's as simple as that. Will you marry me?"

She gasped and put her right hand over her mouth as tears filled her eyes. "Yes, Deacon, yes I'll marry you."

He slipped the three karat sparkler on her finger. "You gave the other ring back to me three times I thought it was time for a change."

"I love it and I love you." She examined the ring on her finger.

He kissed her belly twice while he was at the right level. "Daddy loves you boys so much." He got up and kissed her passionately. "And I love you so much."

"We love you too, daddy." She smiled at him through the tears in her eyes.

"We better get back out there before your sister sends a search party out to look for us." He mumbled against her lips.

"You're right let's go." She took his hand and they walked back out to rejoin the party.

Bucky caught Deacon's eye and raised an eyebrow.

Deacon nodded his head with a smile.

Bucky sent a signal to Maddie.

Maddie grabbed Daphne's hand and they both took the stage. Maddie picked up a guitar. "Mom, dad, we were hoping that you two would join us."

"What are they up to?" Rayna asked.

"I don't know. We better go find out. Let's just say that I asked them for their permission to marry you and they wanted to help." Deacon led her up on the stage. He grabbed his guitar and he and Maddie started strumming the tune for A Life That's Good.

" _Sitting here tonight by the firelight it reminds me that I already have more than I should."_ Rayna started singing.

" _I don't need fame no one to know my name. At the end of the day lord I pray I have life that's good."_ Maddie and Daphne harmonized.

" _Two arms around me heaven to ground me and a family that always calls me home. Four wheels to get there enough love to share and a sweet sweet sweet song. At the end of the day lord I pray I have a life that's good."_ Rayna and Deacon sang together.

" _Sometimes I'm hard on me when dreams don't come easy. I want to look back and say I did the best I could."_ Maddie and Daphne took that verse.

" _At the end of the day lord I pray I have a life that's good."_ Rayna continued.

" _Two arms around me heaven to ground me and a family that always calls me home."_ Deacon and Rayna sang.

" _Four wheels to get there enough love to share and a sweet sweet sweet song."_ The girls picked up.

" _It's a sweet, sweet song."_ Deacon sang.

" _At the end of the day lord I pray I have a life that's good. At the end of the day of the day lord I pray I have a life that's good."_ They all finished the song together.

"A lot of you might not know this, but I wrote that song on a napkin the night I met Rayna here at the Bluebird. Tonight she made me the happiest man in the world by agreeing to become my wife. I want to thank my wonderful girls for helping me throw this together I couldn't have done it without them. Squirt, I know how hard it was for you to keep this to yourself for so long and I really appreciate it." Deacon was ok being this candid because he knew that they were among friends.

Rayna gave him a meaningful look and he nodded his head. They didn't need words to communicate with each other. She took off the baggy blazer she wore to reveal her expanding baby bump. "Deacon and I think of ya'll as family and we wanted you to be the first to know before we have to tell the media that we are expecting twins." It felt so good to finally get that off of her chest. She was one baggy outfit away from busking out on the streets.

Will let out a loud rebel yell and clapped his hands. Sure he wasn't on the label and it was a decision he regretted, but he and Deacon had become close while they were on Luke's tour together.

"Juliette, if this ends up on the YouTube I blame you." Deacon joked.

"Oh, relax, I knew for a whole damn week and didn't tell anyone." Juliette waved her hand dismissively.

"Deacon, just how much help did you need to propose?" Rayna teased him.

"I needed a lot of help, ok? I was gonna give the ring to you at the studio and Tandy vetoed that idea." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

"Rayna, you should thank us. This man had many horrible ideas about how to propose to you." Tandy informed her.

"That was after he was going to hire a skywriter." Sadie supplied helpfully.

"Deacon, tell me that you didn't." Rayna shook her head at him. She took his hand and walked off the stage.

"The skywriter thing was a joke." Deacon put his hands up in a sign of innocence.

"I'm halfway sure that the jumbotron at the Predators' game wasn't a joke though." Bucky volunteered.

"That also wasn't my idea. That was an answer in response to could I come up with anything more public than the last proposal she got." Deacon pointed at Gunnar who had come up with that idea. He had started hanging around the Highway 65 office to write with Scarlett and Sadie.

"That was after the singing telegram was shot down. But before the barbershop quartet idea that Avery had." Gunnar spoke up.

"Will wanted to mow will you marry me on the front lawn. All ideas were an improvement on that." Avery defended.

"Will, did you mean my front lawn or Deacon's? I already have the HOA on my back because Deacon wants to make fires in the back yard. I don't need to add to that because you want to write words in the grass." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"Deacon lives in East Nashville no one would have thought anything of him writing words on his lawn." Will hugged her. "Congratulations," He was thankful that she wasn't one to hold a grudge. He felt more at home with the artists of Highway 65 than he did with his own label.

"Thank you, Will." Rayna smiled at him.

"You've gotta try to upstage me at everything don't you? You have the perfect hair and the perfect guy now you're pregnant with twins?" Juliette asked jokingly.

"Yeah, Juliette, that's it exactly. Because I wanted double the nausea and twice the pressure on my bladder." Rayna rolled her eyes.

"What I'm trying to say is I'm happy for you. You got yourself one of the good guys." Juliette replied.

"Thanks, I know I do." Rayna smiled in Deacon's direction.

* * *

"So, I didn't put you on the spot too badly tonight did I?" Deacon took the pillows off the bed and threw them in the corner of the room.

"No you didn't, babe, it was perfect. I'm really in love with the fact that you asked the girls' permission and included them in this. I know that it really meant a lot to them." She crawled into bed in a t-shirt and pajama pants.

"I wasn't going to do this without having our girls behind me. Ray, you have no idea how many times they complained to me about feeling like they'd been cut out of everything. They didn't even hesitate to say yes when I asked them. You, those girls, and those two boys are my everything." He laid down beside her and kissed her gently.

"You know I have to have Bucky issue a press release right? Thankfully my daddy worked his magic and Luke is going to go along with whatever I say. It's just a lot to take in without my head exploding at the moment." She sighed.

"Hey, don't do that to yourself, don't stress out that stuff doesn't matter. The only thing that we should really stress out about right now is naming those boys." He rubbed her belly.

"We do have to start thinking of names for them. You really like touching my belly don't you?" She smiled and moved closer to him.

"I do it amazes me that I had anything to do with making these two boys." He admitted.

She closed her eyes and just enjoyed the secure feeling she had from the touch of his hand on her belly. She was so content that she almost didn't hear him when he spoke. "What, babe?"

"I asked you to tell me about when you were pregnant with Maddie." It was just something that he needed to hear about. He needed to know everything that he'd missed out on.

"I threw up around the clock with her. Morning sickness wasn't just confined to the morning. Maddie was restless even in the womb, but I'd take my headphones and put them on my belly and every time she heard you sing she'd calm down. It was the only way that I could get peace enough to sleep. She never calmed down for Teddy that way when he talked to her. I never told anyone this not even Teddy, but when she was a baby I played your album for her all the time and if she was fussy that would calm her right down and she'd get this adorable little smile on her face." She put her hand on top of his and laced their fingers together. It was as hard to talk about it as it was for him to hear it.

"I don't know how I never saw that she was mine. I think it was always in the back of my mind, but I chose to believe that you wouldn't keep something like that from me." He wasn't trying to fight he was just stating facts.

"I don't know how you never knew either. I took one look at her when she was born and any doubt I may have had about her being yours was erased. The older she gets the more she looks and acts like you for that matter. She's always been a brooder. She wants to go off and think on things in solitude. I don't have to tell you that you already knew that." She chuckled lightly.

"I know that well. She is just like me when it comes to that. The quieter she gets the more something is bothering her. That's when I push her and make her start talkin'. I never had anyone to do that for me and now that's why my first reaction to things is to run off by myself and stew. I know it hurts you when I do that and I'm workin' on it, so I'm gonna need you to be patient with me." He wasn't completely blameless when it came to their problems and he was owning his part in that.

"Have I told you lately how much I love this side of you? Babe, we are gonna have our issues and our little spats, but none of that matters as long as we are both willing to work on it together. I don't expect you to be perfect and I know you don't expect that out of me either. There is room to be human in there. I also know that it would be stupid to just ignore our problems, but like I said we are working through that. I lied to you for thirteen years and you are an alcoholic the difference is you have a disease and you do your best to keep it under control. I could have told you that you had a daughter I should have told you and we could have gone from there." She wasn't naïve enough to think that just one conversation was going to fix what had been broken between them, but if they were open in honest about it then they still had hope.

"Ray, I'm not trying to fight with you or make you said especially not tonight. You've just made me the happiest that I've ever been. I just need to know these things about our little girl. I do have a pretty good handle on my alcoholism most days. I regret like hell that I broke thirteen years of sobriety. Honestly though I didn't do that because I wanted to drink not entirely I did it to hurt you. Even though they say you're not supposed to do it I got sober for you to prove to you that I could do it and be a good man. Drinking was the only thing I could think to do that would hurt you as much as you'd hurt me." He told her honestly.

"I'd always planned to tell you one day. I knew you'd be sad and pissed off, but once I explained why you'd understand. In my head I'd tell you that Maddie is ours and I couldn't tell you because I had to protect her and you'd say something like I'm hurt, but I understand why you did it. I need some time to process this, but I still love you and I always will." She had given the matter a great deal of thought over the years.

"You had this all planned out did you?" He grinned at her. He loved that they could talk like this now without getting into a screaming match.

"I did. I went to tell you so many times and then I'd chicken out." She got out of bed and went into her closet.

"Ray, what are you doing?" He had a confused look on his face.

"You'll see in just a minute." She got back in bed a minute later with a baby book in her hands. She handed it to him. "Here, look at this."

Deacon opened the baby book and on the first page there was a picture of him holding three month old Maddie in his arms. Underneath the picture was the caption 'Daddy and His Girl'. He turned the page and there was a picture of Maddie and him sleeping in his bunk on the tour bus. He was flat on his back and she laid perched on his chest. His throat got tight and his eyes started to water. With each page he flipped he found a new candid photo of himself with his daughter.

"What do you think?" Rayna's voice was barely above a whisper.

"I love it, Ray. I can't believe you took the time to make this." He smiled at her through the tears in his eyes.

"I was always gonna tell you, babe. It just got harder the more time went by. You two were drawn to each other from the beginning. There were so many times I thought you would see her mannerisms in her and call me out on it. She crawled to you first and she took her first steps to you. I kept you around as my band leader so you could be apart of her life even if you didn't know she was your daughter." She took his hand and kissed it.

"Thank you for this, Ray. You have no idea how much it means to me." He put the book on his bedside table and leaned down to kiss her.

"I love you so much, Deacon." She whispered against his lips.

"I love you too." He rubbed her cheek gently with the back of his hand.

"I'm the luckiest woman in the world. I can't wait to see our boys grow into good men like their daddy." She wrapped her arms around him.

"Anything good in those boys will be because you instilled it in them." He disputed.

"Don't say that you're a great daddy and I always knew you would be if you got your act together." She laid her head on his chest.

He cleared his throat. "So, what do you think about wedding dates?"

"I think that I want to be married to you as soon as possible and before these boys are born. I don't feel like we are moving to fast or rushing into anything. I feel an eager anticipation for what comes next with you that wasn't there when I was with Luke or Teddy for that matter." She smiled when he placed a kiss on her head.

"I would marry you tomorrow in the back yard if I thought that we could get away with it and not have the HOA on our asses." He chuckled.

"So before I start to show too much more and not in the back yard because you are hell bent on giving the HOA a heart attack with the things you do." She laughed.

"Nothing has to be decided tonight we can take time to just enjoy the fact we are going to be together for the rest of our lives. I have other things that I much rather do with you tonight." He kissed her deeply.

* * *

"Remind me why we are doing this again." Deacon leaned over in his chair and whispered to Rayna.

"We are doing this because your wife to be is fed up with the vultures hanging around the house and if she finds one more reporter waiting at the front gate the HOA is going to be the least of our problems. I will be in jail for running one of them over with my car." Rayna whispered back. They were at the local studio getting ready to do a segment for Good Morning America. They had been hounded by the media since the press release announcing their engagement and the pregnancy.

"Ms. Jaymes, Mr. Claybourne, we're going live in thirty seconds." A producer told them.

"Here we go, babe." Rayna clasped Deacon's hand tightly and fixed a smile on her face.

"I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be." Deacon grumbled.

"And five, four, three, two, one." The producer counted down.

Robin Roberts appeared on the monitor. "And we're back. Joining us via satellite this morning from Nashville are country music superstar Rayna Jaymes and guitarist Deacon Claybourne. Thank you two for making time in your busy schedules to join us. I know that you both have far better things to do with your time. Rayna, you have a triple platinum album out and Deacon, you have a number one single on your hands with Just As I Am."

"We are happy to be here this morning, Robin." Rayna took the lead.

"The big question on everyone's minds is aren't things moving a little fast for you two? I mean it hasn't been very long since your split from Luke Wheeler. Already you're engaged and expecting twins." Robin asked.

"The argument could be made that things moved a little slowly for us and we are just now playing catchup." Deacon said in an easy manner.

"Well, I'm almost six months pregnant and we just didn't see the need in waiting around anymore. When you know you know. Deacon has been my guy for more years than I care to count at the moment." Rayna smiled.

"That of course begs the question if you're that pregnant did you cheat on Luke?" Robin questioned.

"Absolutely not. I've always been faithful in my relationships. After it came out that Deacon is the father of my oldest daughter. Luke decided that we both needed some time and space to sort things out and we broke things off. We got back together after he was injured in Afghanistan. When we found out that I was pregnant and Deacon was the father we decided to end things for good. We found out shortly before the CMAs and we didn't want that to be the lead story, so we tried to see if we could work things out and we couldn't." Rayna answered. She had spent hours perfecting that statement and it sounded damn good to her.

"We just want to be a family and put the rest of this behind us. We are looking forward to our wedding and the birth of our children." Deacon gave the line that Rayna had made him commit to memory.

"Any chance you two are willing to divulge the sexes?" Robin smiled.

"No, some things are better left to surprise. Everyone is just gonna have to wait until February or March to find that out. It all depends on when these babies decide to make their entrance into the world. I get the feeling that they are a little stubborn like their daddy already." Rayna laughed and squeezed Deacon's hand.

"Fair enough," Robin chuckled. "Deacon, how about you play us out with your new single?"

"I'd love to." Deacon picked up his guitar and started to play Just As I Am.

"See, babe, that wasn't as bad as you thought it was going to be." Rayna told him as they sat in his truck.

"It could have been worse you're right. I just don't like having to give those personal parts of our life and make them so public." Deacon pulled out into traffic and began to drive home.

"I know and neither do I. That should be the last time we have to do anything like that for awhile at least. I don't want to air the details of our personal life. That was just something I had to do to protect my image. Now, I don't give a good damn what anyone thinks. I framed the story and they can believe it or not. The only thing I care about is how deliriously happy our little family makes me." She reached out and held his hand while he drove.

"That's all I care about too. Though I am just a little excited that my single has taken off the way that it has." He replied.

"Your label head is very excited about that too. I knew I bet on the right horse when I bet on you to keep the label afloat." She teased him. She was happy that he was finally experiencing success as a solo artist. Sure it was probably because he was her fiancé and baby daddy, but it was still a win for that. He deserved that much after he'd stood by her side dutifully for years. She knew he didn't care about anything than making music and reaching people with it, but it was nice to see him in this light.

"Let's get home we have a wedding to start planning. Those boys are growing like weeds." He laughed.

"I agree, let's go home." She smiled.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I love all the great feedback I'm getting from you guys and it means the world to me. Until next time please review.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 11

"Ow!" Rayna heard as she made her way down the stairs to the kitchen. That couldn't be good at all. It certainly wasn't how she wanted to start her morning anyway. She was way too fuzzy to deal with a crisis first thing. She wandered into the kitchen in her t-shirt and pajama pants to find Maddie closing the oven door and Daphne clutching her hand. "What in the world is going on in here?"

"Daphne and I were making cookies and she must have forgotten that the pan was hot." Maddie answered.

Rayna took Daphne over to the sink and started running cold water on her hand. "Maddie, get me some ice. Why were you making cookies this early in the morning?"

"Because we wanted to surprise you and we thought you forgot." Daphne admitted.

"You've just been really busy and we wanted to help out." Maddie handed Rayna the ice she'd asked for.

"Your momma might have a little bit of pregnancy brain right now, but I didn't forget about making cookies and getting all of our decorations out. Actually Deacon is going to get those out because I'm too pregnant to handle that. I know that we are going through a lot of changes right now and it has to be hard on you. I want to keep things as normal as possible and I want you to come to me if you start to feel overwhelmed." Rayna put the ice on Daphne's hand.

"We aren't overwhelmed it just seems like you and dad have been really preoccupied lately." Maddie shrugged.

"We have been there were some things that we needed to take care of and they are taken care of now. I didn't mean for you girls to get lost in the shuffle that's the main thing that I didn't want to happen. I'll tell you what we can bake cookies and stay in our pajamas and just hang out today. We can also eat all of the cookies before Deacon gets home and make some more with him. How's that sound? Do you like that idea?" Rayna suggested.

"Yeah," Daphne nodded enthusiastically.

"Sure, mom," Maddie agreed.

"Now let's look at this hand." Rayna took the ice off of Daphne's hand and examined her hand. "Well, it looks like I'm gonna need to amputate. You think so?" She teased.

"I think so." Maddie agreed.

"Maddie, just go get me a knife. I'll take care of this right here." Rayna ordered playfully.

"No, don't." Daphne giggled.

"I'm just kidding. You're gonna be fine." Rayna kissed the top of her head.

"Where is dad anyway?" Maddie inquired.

"He's in Mississippi. He's got a radio interview that he's doing in Jackson this morning. He will be back later in the day." Rayna answered.

"Why didn't you go with him?" Daphne asked. It was rare for Rayna and Deacon to do anything separate these days.

"I offered, but he said that we could all use a girls' day without him hanging around. He's very sweet to think about us like that." Rayna smiled.

"Wait isn't dad from Mississippi?" Maddie asked brightly.

"He is you should ask him about it sometime. I can see that you have questions, but that's his story to tell you and I'm not gonna take that away from him." Rayna wasn't going to disclose anything about Deacon's past to the girls that he didn't want them to know. She knew what a touchy subject that was with him. They had been together for eleven years and it had taken her the first three to get his story out of him. "Now, who wants to contribute to their momma's increasingly bad diet and feed the twins cookies for breakfast?"

"Deacon says that the twins need real food and we aren't supposed to give into your every craving without getting you to eat something good first." Daphne informed her mother seriously.

"If you won't tell Deacon I won't tell Deacon. Besides you're their big sister it's your job to give them things they aren't supposed to have." Rayna winked at her. She appealed to her as a big sister because she knew that Deacon had pounded it into her what a special job that was.

"Ok," Daphne readily agreed.

"Way to work the system, mom." Maddie chuckled.

"Hush, you, or I will tell your dads that you have been milking them both for double allowance every week. I admire your tenacity, but I caught on when you started buying all this extra stuff for your guitars." Rayna laughed at the indignant look that crossed her daughter's face.

"If you tell dad then I will tell him where you hide your not so secret stash of raw cookie dough." Maddie countered.

"Don't be so rash. I'm sure that you and I can come to an understanding about this." Rayna bargained. She was allowing herself to be extorted by her fifteen-year-old it was probably a hereditary trait she'd picked up from Lamar.

* * *

The unchanging scenery of the Mississippi landscape passed by the windows of Deacon's rented truck as he traveled I-55 south from Jackson to Natchez. He couldn't be in Mississippi without stopping by to see his family. Natchez was only a two-hour drive from Jackson and he suspected that Rayna had known what his true intentions were when he'd told her that she didn't have to come with him for his radio interview. This was something that he needed to do alone. He had to come to terms with his past or it would forever threaten his future.

Natchez was a historic port city located on the eastern bank of the Mississippi River. It boasted a population of about 15,000. The small town atmosphere mingled a little with the big city vibe. The memories started to wash over him the moment he rolled into town. He passed by Natchez High School and spotted the empty football field where he had spent many Friday nights playing under the lights.

A shiver ran down his spine when he passed the county jail. He had many bad memories associated with that place and his father. He drove until he reached a fork in the road and he had a choice to make much like he did the day he'd left for good. He could turn right and head back into town or he could turn left and go back to the past he'd spent so long running from.

After taking a deep breath he flipped his left turn signal. He wasn't sure that he wanted to do this, but he was sure that he needed to do it if not for him than for the sake of the life he was trying to build with Rayna. Soon enough the paved road turned into gravel. He'd left behind the houses of the suburbs and now both sides of the road of lined with mobile homes. He drove until he reached a double wide with lime green siding on it. The mailbox was marked 250 D and someone had written Claybourne on the side in black spray paint that had long ago started to fade.

He pulled into the driveway and turned the truck off. His reflection in the rearview mirror was haunted. He ran his hands over his face and sighed loudly. He looked at his phone to check for messages and he was greeted with the sight of Maddie and Daphne's smiling faces. They had obviously stolen his phone and made their picture his screensaver. After warring with himself for five minutes he finally got out of the truck.

The yard in front of the trailer was overgrown with weeds. In some spots the grass was brown because it had been long neglected. The front steps were still as rickety as he remembered them being and he was careful to tread lightly to avoid falling through them. He opened the screen door and tried the door handle for the inner door. It was locked, no surprise there.

He took his wallet out of his back pocket and pulled a key out of it. The key fit perfectly in the deadbolt just like he knew it would. He'd kept that key even when he and Rayna had finally made it to the big show. It was a reminder of where he'd come from and where he never wanted to go back to if he had anything to say about it. Every time he felt like he wanted to take a drink he would take it out and just stare at it. Most of the time the unpleasant memories he associated with the key were enough to keep him from ever taking a drink again.

The inside of the mobile home still looked and smelled the way it did the day he'd left. The linoleum in the kitchen had started to crack and peel from the sun that spilled in through the small window. The air was musty from the trailer being closed up for so long. He stood at the kitchen sink for a moment and he could almost see his father in the other room beating his mother for dinner not being up to his rigid standards. Of course he managed to beat her within an inch of her life without spilling a drop of the beer he held in his other hand.

Deacon shook the thought from his head and walked back to what had once been his bedroom. Posters of Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Hank Williams and Roy Acuff still hung on the walls. On one of the walls there was a darker spot where his first guitar had once hung. He'd lay on his modest twin size bed and play for hours in hopes of drowning out the sounds of his parents' loud fights. He'd gotten out the minute he graduated high school and he'd never looked back.

When the memories became too much for him he turned to go. He hesitated for a moment and then he carefully took the posters off the wall. He carried them back into the kitchen and opened up the junk drawer in search of a rubber band to hold them together. His breath hitched in his throat when his eyes fell on a flyer from one of the first shows he'd played with Rayna. He picked it up reverently. The paper was yellow with age, but other than that it was easy to make out. It was from a show they had played at a bar in Jackson. He put a rubber band around that and his posters and he walked out making sure to lock the door behind him.

It took him a moment to get the truck started once he got back behind the wheel because his hands were shaking so badly. What had he been thinking coming here like this? What had it solved in the long run? This was just the first of many things that he had run from and he'd repeated that behavior over and over to the point he'd almost turned into the one person he despised the most in the world anyway. He was still running from this it just seemed that he couldn't run far enough or fast enough to escape it. It always managed to catch up with him sooner or later.

He pointed the truck back towards town. Sitting there and taking a trip down not-so-happy-memory-lane wasn't going to do him any good. Actually that was an understatement that trailer and all the memories it held was more like a Nightmare on Elm Street. The closer he got to town the more the shaking stopped. As a matter of fact he started to feel pretty good about the fact that he'd faced his demons without needing any liquid courage or feeling the urge to drink.

He navigated the truck into the parking lot of a diner named The Pit Stop. It was a Waffle House type establishment that catered to over the road truckers and musicians passing through town on the way to their next gig. He looked up something on his phone to make sure this was the right place. Of course it was the right place he couldn't be lucky enough for this not to be the right place. If he went in there it would make everything real.

Going to the trailer had been one thing, but he'd been alone and he'd been able to go through it at his on pace. This was going to be something else entirely and he wasn't sure he was ready for it. Then again this was something that he would probably never be ready for it was something he just had to do. To follow his own advice there was thinking about doing something and then there was doing something. There was thinking about the man he wanted to be for his children in theory and then there was putting those plans into action.

Inside the diner looked like a time warp from the 1950s. The waitresses wore yellow dresses with white aprons over them. The juke box still played records rather than MP3s like modern juke boxes. Deacon reached into his pocket and dropped a couple of quarters in the jukebox. He punched in his selection and sat down at the counter with a smirk on his face as Hound Dog began to play. It had been one of the first songs he learned to play on the guitar.

A waitress whose nametag read Dee walked over to him. "Hey, sweetie, what can I get for you?"

"Just coffee would be great for now." Deacon smiled politely.

Dee got his coffee and returned a moment later. "Just let me know if there is anything else I can do for you." She sat the mug down in front of him.

"Actually, you can tell me if June is in." He took a sip of his coffee. That hit the spot it wasn't exactly as good a double Jack on the rocks, but it would have to do.

"She's in back let me get her for you." Dee walked into the kitchen.

A moment later a thin woman in her sixties with blonde hair walked out of the kitchen. She gasped loudly when she saw Deacon. "Deacon John, what are you doing here?" She walked out from behind the counter.

Deacon stood up and allowed her to look him all over before she threw her arms around him. "Hi, momma," He hugged her back.

"Oh, look at you. If you aren't a sight for sore eyes I don't know who is." June Claybourne looked at her only son with tears in her eyes. It had been at least five years since she'd seen him in person. They talked occasionally and he sent her money every month, but that was the extent of their relationship.

"It's good to see you too." He gave her a half smile.

"Now, you sit yourself right down and let me get you some breakfast. Bev is gonna be so excited to see you. I've been hearing them play your song on the radio and we saw you on that big awards show." She sat him back down on his stool and went behind the counter.

"I don't think Beverly is gonna be very happy to see me. We had some words the last time we saw each other. And I don't think she's gonna be thrilled about some of the recent choices that I've made with my life. I actually have a reason for coming here." He took an envelope out of his jacket pocket and handed it to her.

"Nonsense, you're her baby brother and she adores you she always has." She opened up the envelope that he had handed her it was a wedding invitation that read. _The honor of your presence is requested at the wedding of Ms. Rayna Alisia Jaymes to Mr. Deacon John Claybourne on December 31, 2014._

"Well, she isn't gonna be very happy about that. You know how she feels about Ray." He shrugged his shoulders.

"You know how much I like Rayna and that I've always thought that she's good for you. Thank you for bringing this to me in person. I know that you're busy being a big country star these days." She put the invitation into her apron.

"Did you want to see a picture of your granddaughter?" His eyes lit up every time he talked about his children.

"Of course I do." She smiled.

He pulled up a picture on his phone of Maddie, Scarlett, and Daphne. "That's my Maddie right there and that one there is Daphne that's my other girl." He pointed to each of the girls as he spoke.

"Deacon, she looks just like you and you look just like your granddaddy. You are happier than I have ever seen you." She put her hand on top of his.

"I am very happy." He pulled up the twins' ultrasound photo on his phone and showed it to her. "Momma, these are your two newest grandbabies. They are still under construction right now."

"You have been a very busy boy haven't you?" She teased him.

"I have been, but in a good way." He smiled.

"Oh my goodness! There's my baby brother!" A voice squealed behind Deacon.

He turned around only to come face to face with his sister. "Hey, Beverly," He stood up and pulled her into a hug.

"You're so busy these days I didn't think you'd have time for us anymore. I would have thought princess would have been keeping you on a tight leash." Beverly hugged him tightly.

"Come on, Bev, don't do that. Any and all of the choices I made are on me not Ray. If you want to dislike someone for something dislike me. I made the choice to leave and to stay gone. I made the choice to just be her band leader she didn't force that on me." He told her patiently.

"Did you also make the choice not to be a father to your daughter for thirteen years?" Beverly questioned hotly.

"Bev, look I know that you don't like Ray anymore than her sister likes me, but here's the thing. If you want to be part of the family, you have to at least learn to be civil to her. That is something we are working through together neither of us are innocent in that situation. I would hate to think that my sister can't get over herself long enough to come be Aunt Bev." He leveled with her.

"If that's the price I have to pay to see my baby brother more than once every few years I suppose I'm gonna have to pay it." Beverly relented.

* * *

"Girls! I'm home." Deacon called out when he walked into the house. He walked into the living room carrying his guitar case and he set it down. He chuckled when he found that Rayna and both the girls were still in their pajamas despite the fact that it was two in the afternoon. They were too engrossed in whatever chick flick they were watching to notice his presence.

Elvis climbed up on his leg and wagged his tail happily. He reached down and scratched his ears. "Hey, boy, it's good to see that at least one of you missed me."

"Shh," All three of them shushed him in unison.

"Seriously?" He laughed and shook his head. "I can't wait for those two boys to get here so I'm not outnumbered anymore."

"You still have quite a few years before they are any help to you in the movie department." Rayna paused the movie. "Aren't you even gonna kiss your pregnant fiancé after you ditched her to play rock star all morning?" She pouted.

"The same fiancé that just shushed me for talking during her chick flick? I think not." He leaned down and kissed her.

"Mmm, I missed you. What kept you so long?" Rayna asked.

"I had to go to Natchez and let's leave it at that." He gestured with his eyes to the girls hoping that she would get the hint that he didn't want to talk about it at the moment. "Though I will ask what you three are still doing in your pajamas this time of day?"

"We were having a movie marathon and waiting for you to get back." Daphne supplied helpfully.

"Yeah, dad, we are going to make cookies and sing Christmas carols and get the decorations out." Maddie told him.

"Well, let me go change since the attire around here seems to be informal today. I'll be right back and then one of you can show me where the decorations are." He picked up his guitar case and carried it up to the bedroom with him. He traded his signature jeans and flannel shirt for pajama pants and a t-shirt.

He sat on the bed, opened up his guitar case, and took the posters out that he had taken from his old bedroom. He walked into the room that they were going to use for the nursery and started looking for a good place to put them.

"Hey, what do you got there?" Rayna asked him from the doorway.

He looked up and craned his neck to look at her. "I went by the old place today and about the only thing that time hadn't touched was the posters that were on my wall. I thought we could put them up in here for the boys."

She walked up and wrapped her arms around him from behind. "Are you ok? I know how hard that had to be on you."

"Yeah, I'm fine. It was hard, but it wasn't if that even makes any sense." He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it.

"If makes perfect sense to me, babe. It's like going back to my daddy's house will always be that way to me. On one hand I have great memories of my momma there, but on the other hand I will always remember him throwing me out at sixteen." She rested her chin on his shoulder.

"I went by to see my momma while I was in town and I invited her to the wedding. I've got to start sending her more money a month. A woman her age doesn't need to still be slaving away in that diner." He was mostly thinking out loud.

"How is she doing?" She had always been fond of his mother.

"She seems to be doing alright. She was so excited to see me. I have to be the most horrible son on the face of the earth. I can't even really say for sure the last time I saw her before today. She was so damn proud, Ray. She had to show me off to all of her friends. That's what took me so long. It looked like she was gonna cry when I finally had to leave." He sighed.

"I know all about difficult relationships with your parents. I'm barely on speaking terms with my father most of the time, but I know with you it goes deeper than that. I think Maddie is starting to have questions about where you come from and I told her that she'd have to ask you. So, don't be surprised if she starts hurling questions at you." She warned him.

"I can barely deal with my past most of the time. I don't know how to tell someone as pure and innocent as her about all the ugly things I have hiding in my closet. I don't know that I want to tell her." His shoulders slumped in defeat.

"Take it from me you don't want to lie to her. Just tell her everything that you can stand to tell her and save the rest for when she is older. We've discussed how much like you she is. That means she's tough she can take it." She ran her hands up and down his abs.

"Ray, I never wanna be anything like that man. He's so bad that I'm still running from the memory of him long after I left home." He bowed his head.

"You're not your father and I'm not mine. It's a damn good thing or our kids would be in sad shape. We love each other unconditionally and we love these kids to the point we would die for them. I think we are gonna be ok." She hugged him a little tighter to comfort him.

"I don't deserve to be loved as well as you love me." He turned around and pulled her into his arms.

"That's tough shit, mister. Because I love you so damn much that it isn't funny." She reached up and kissed him.

"I love you too, woman. I don't know what I would do without you." Without him meaning for them to his hands wandered to her belly.

"Come on I'll show you where the decorations are and I'll offer moral support while you do all the heavy lifting." She grasped his hand.

"That sounds like a good deal for someone." He grinned and let her lead him off.

* * *

"Well, I'll see this. This tree looks a hell of a lot better than the ones I normally have at my place." Deacon commented once they had the tree up.

"And that's saying something we had some really sad looking Christmas trees in those early days. Without fail you and Vince would get into a wrestling match and break at least six of the ornaments every Christmas." Rayna smiled fondly.

"You should be made a saint for putting up with me and Vince. We were quite the pair." He chuckled at the mention of his best friend.

"Don't I know it?" She held a sprig of mistletoe over his head and stole a kiss from him.

He picked the angel for the top of the tree up. "Come here, Squirt." He handed the angel to Daphne and picked her up so she could put it on top of the tree.

"All done," Daphne announced. She giggled when Deacon spun her around before setting her back on her feet.

"Dad, we got you something." Maddie handed him a stocking with his name on it.

"Thank you, ladies, I love this." He took the stocking and hung it on the mantle next to theirs.

"Look, Deacon, we even got Elvis a stocking." Daphne showed him a stocking with the dog's name on it.

"I'm sure he appreciates it as much as I do." He chuckled at her enthusiasm.

"Now that that's done what do you ya'll say we go into the kitchen and make some cookies?" Rayna suggested.

"I'd say that depends on how much of that raw cookie dough you've fed those boys today that I'm not supposed to know about." He winked at her.

"I of course have no idea what you're talking about." Rayna pretended to be offended.

"Sure you don't. Maybe you should try not hiding it in the ice cream carton when I'm the one you have getting you ice cream in the middle of the night." He called her out.

"On the advice of my lawyer I'm going to plead the fifth." Rayna joked.

"I see is this the same team of lawyers that can't take care of a simple problem?" He arched his eyebrow.

"Deacon, if I were you I would stop talking before I make you sleep on the couch." Rayna advised him.

"We both know that that threat has never held much water. You'd just end up on the couch with me or you'd call me in the room to get you whatever weird food you're craving at the moment." He countered.

Rayna kissed him to shut him up. "You're lucky I love you."

"Don't I know it?" He pulled her close to him.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I thought that the show missed out on a golden opportunity when they said that Deacon's mom was dead so I resurrected to her for this story. I think that it will be a good way to explore his back story and help give a better understanding of his character. Until next time please review.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Route 3 Box 250 D by Randy Houser and Hypnotize the Moon by Clay Walker.

* * *

Chapter 12

Deacon sat up late working in the music room. Being back in Natchez had brought a lot of feelings back to the surface that he thought he'd buried for good. He jotted lyrics down on his notepad and played around with different chords on the guitar.

"Dad, what are you doing up?" Maddie stuck her head into the room.

"Hey, baby girl, I was just writing. Your momma is a little restless tonight and I sometimes suffer from insomnia. I wasn't getting any sleep tonight so I thought I'd be productive." He smiled up at her.

She came in and took a seat next to him. "What are you writing about?"

"Just some stuff about my past." He picked up his notepad and put it on the couch next to him.

"Like what?" She pressed him harder.

"How about I play it for you and then you can ask me questions?" He picked up his guitar and picked out a tune. _"I'd like to say it was perfect growing up was a fairytale, but Hollywood don't make no movies about a house up on wheels down a dirt road Mississippi tucked back in the trees. Route three box two-fifty d."_

" _Well, the man my momma married had a mean streak in his blood and when he'd take it out on us. And I could my momma crying that made it hard to sleep. Route three box two-fifty d."_ He watched Maddie's face for a reaction.

Maddie for her part looked a little shocked.

" _That's where I became a man long before my time. And since I left I ain't been back, but I go back in my mind."_ He put his guitar down and looked at his daughter. "Ask me anything you want to ask me. I will try to answer if I can."

"Did that really happen to you?" She asked timidly.

"It did. My father isn't a good man and I never want you to feel about me the way I feel about him. My momma was in denial about the way he was. Partly because she loved him and I guess partly because she didn't know what to do about it." He swallowed hard.

"Is that why you drank?" She tried to get a better understanding of where she came from.

"That's a complicated question and I'm not sure I have an answer for you. I'm not sure that I know the answer. The only thing I'm sure of if that you don't ever have to be scared of me. I would never put my hands on any of you." He promised her.

"When did you leave home?" She went on.

"I was seventeen. I graduated on a Thursday night and I was gone Friday morning. I just took off and I didn't look back not even once. I came straight here and I slept in my truck for I don't know how long. I met Vince my first night in town and we eventually scraped together enough money to rent the crappiest little apartment you've ever seen. I guess I was in town a year or two when I met your momma." He gave her as brief a history as he could get away with.

"Who is Vince?" Maddie was full of questions.

"He was my best friend and the drummer in your momma's band. He died in a car accident about a year before you were born." He got up and rummaged through Rayna's collection of her albums and picked one out. "This was Vince. I sometimes think he was born too far gone." He took a shaky breath.

"Maddie, why don't you go on up to bed and give your daddy a break? I think he's had enough tonight." Rayna said from where she stood in the doorway watching them.

Deacon shot her a grateful look.

Maddie put her arms around his neck. "Night, dad, I love you."

"I love you too, sweet girl. Sleep well," He kissed the top of her head.

"You ok?" She asked once Maddie had gone back upstairs.

"I didn't think I would be, but I am. I glossed over most of it. I gave her the short version." He stared down at the picture of his dead friend.

"Deacon, Vince wasn't on you it wasn't your job to save him and it wasn't your fault." She knew he still harbored a lot of guilt about that.

"I made him drive, Ray. We had both been drinkin' that night, but I knew you'd have my ass if you even thought I'd been behind the wheel of a car. So, I didn't stop him when he said he was ok to drive. We'd done it hundreds of times before." He looked up at her.

"You were wearing a seat belt he wasn't. You're right I would have had your ass. I would have killed you had you been driving. I hid the keys at night just so you wouldn't get up and go out for more whiskey. You trying to pay the liquor store clerk with monopoly money was my wakeup call. I had to start keeping a better eye on you." She chuckled lightly. His alcoholism was nothing to laugh at, but that incident had been funny.

"I just feel bad because he had a kid at home. Deep down I know that it wasn't my fault I guess I just like punishing myself for things. I never thought that we'd get married and he wouldn't be there. And it was a bartender I tried to pay in monopoly money." He half smirked.

"I know, babe, he was my friend too even if he and I got into battles over the mess he made in that apartment. Neither of you starting keeping things clean until you met me and I basically moved in there." She replied.

"You didn't know how to clean until you sorta moved in with us. By the way I saw your crazy Aunt Dottie a few years back and she told me that we never fooled her she knew that you were staying with me when you said you were staying with friends." He laughed.

"You and my Aunt Dottie don't need to even breathe the same air as each other. You two would get crazy together and that was without alcohol involved. You both got ten times worse when you were drinking." She rolled her eyes playfully. They were talking about the aunt she had lived with after Lamar threw her out of the house.

"Aunt Dottie and I are just misunderstood we had a big deep conversation about it one day when she came to track you down at the apartment." He joked with her.

"You and Aunt Dottie are both so full of it when you want to be. She was ecstatic when she found out we are getting married. She's the only person in my family that has ever liked you. Though I do think you are starting to grow on Tandy." She smiled softly.

"If only you could start to grow on Bev that would be great. As it stands she can't even pretend to like you. And I'm just rambling now because I've been goin' since I woke up this mornin' but my crazy I'm a recovering addict insomnia won't let me sleep tonight." He sighed.

"I can't sleep either, babe. If you wanna go make me some ice cream, I'd be willing to stay up with you while you write. That song you played for Maddie was really good." She offered. Really she was just trying to have him get ice cream for her.

He looked at her and laughed. "Alright, I'll get your ice cream, but I can't keep dwelling on the past it gets depressing."

She pulled him to her by the front of his shirt and kissed him. "You're not your father and you weren't Vince's keeper. Stop taking the weight of the world on your shoulders. You have enough to take care of right here."

"Yes, ma'am," He grinned and stole another kiss from her.

* * *

"Thank you for coming tonight. It means a lot to me." Scarlett hugged Deacon and Rayna.

"I wouldn't miss this for anything in the world. I've been hoping that you would get back on that stage again." Deacon smiled at her.

"We wouldn't be anywhere else right now, sweetie. I'm really glad that you decided to perform again." Rayna told her. They were at open mic night at the Bluebird. Scarlett was going to go onstage with Gunnar and Avery.

"We're on after this next act so I will talk to you both after." Scarlett smiled and went off to find the boys.

"Now let's give a big Bluebird welcome to JC Grayson." Gunnar announced. He was still the sound guy for the Bluebird on occasion.

A young man in his late teens or early twenties took the stage with his acoustic guitar in his hands. He was dark headed and he wore a black cowboy hat. It paired well with his checkered shirt and jeans. He sat down on a stool and started strumming his guitar.

" _She knew she caught my eye and that was all it took. Ain't it strange how forever changed with just one look? The magic filled the night she touched my soul like no one else. Yes, that woman made me feel left me talking to myself. You better run for cover you better hide heart cause you start to love her you know you'll never stop. She shines like a diamond when she walks into the room. She could charm a star hypnotize the moon."_ His voice was smooth and mellow with the hint of southern twang.

"Ray, that's my song." Deacon said with a confused look on his face.

"What do you mean that's your song?" Rayna questioned him.

"I mean I wrote that song with Vince." He replied.

" _Once I held her close I knew just where I stood. No you never get a second to ever feel so good. Then and there I knew these words were etched in stone. No you can't feel the power of the greatest love you've known. You better run for cover you better hide your heart cause once you start to love her you know you'll never stop. She shines like a diamond when she walks into the room. She could charm a star hypnotize the moon."_ JC sang the next line.

"You and Vince wrote a lot of songs together." She supplied helpfully.

"This one was about you and his girlfriend." He informed her.

"Well, why don't you ask him after he finishes?" She suggested.

" _You better run for cover you better hide your heart cause once you start to love her you know you'll never stop. She shines like a diamond when she walks into the room she could charm a star hypnotize the moon. You better run for cover you better hide your heart cause once you start to love her you know you'll never stop she shines like a diamond when she walks into the room. She could charm a star hypnotize the moon."_ JC finished his song and got down off the stage.

"Ray, I'll be right back." Deacon got up from his seat to go talk to JC.

"I'll be here waiting." Rayna smiled at him. She knew that this was something he needed to do. He'd had Vince on his mind a lot lately.

Deacon walked over to where JC stood nursing a beer. "Hey, man, that was some song."

"Thanks," JC replied he did a double take when he saw who was talking to him. "I found it in a box of my father's stuff awhile ago. You don't recognize me do you, Uncle Deacon?"

Recognition dawned on Deacon's face. "Jimmy? That can't be you. The last time I saw you, you were a little bitty thing." JC was Vince's son and Deacon's godson.

"The last time I saw you was right before my grandparents shuttled me off to Texas. It's actually JC now there are one too many Jimmy's in country music." JC chuckled.

"Come on, there is someone I want you to meet." Deacon put his arm around his shoulders and led him over to where Rayna sat. "Ray, you'll never guess who this guy is." He smiled widely.

"I have pregnancy brain right now we are lucky that I know my own name." Rayna offered her hand to JC. "Rayna Jaymes,"

"I know who you are, Ms. Jaymes, I think you might know me better if I told you my given name is James Clay Grayson." JC shook her hand.

"Jimmy, look how grownup you are." Rayna stood and hugged him. He was also her godson. She and Deacon had been very close to his mother and father.

"How old are you now?" Deacon asked him.

"I'm eighteen, I had all I could stand of Texas and I thought I'd come home and try to make a go of things here." JC shrugged.

"Listen if you need anything at all or if you want to pick up some work don't hesitate to call or stop by the office." Rayna handed him a business card.

"Thank you, I'll probably take you up on that offer. Living in a two-bedroom apartment with three other musicians isn't the most appealing prospect in the world, but it beats being homeless." JC smiled his thanks.

"You should come by the office sometime and we might be able to hook you up doing some work as a roadie or some studio work. You're pretty good on that guitar." Deacon told him.

"Steady work would be wonderful. It's like living in a frat house sometimes. I best be goin', but it was nice to see you both." JC said before he walked away.

"Imagine that, Vince's boy is all grown up and back in Nashville." Deacon smiled.

"Stanger things have happened to us recently we shouldn't be all that surprised. It's weird because we were just talking about him." Rayna replied. She could see the wheels in Deacon's head turning and it was better to just let him be.

"Scarlett, that was amazing. How did it feel?" Deacon wrapped his arms around his niece after she got off the stage.

"It was absolutely amazing and I feel better than I have in a long time. Thank you for pushing me to get back out there." Scarlett hugged him back.

"You're welcome. I only want you to be happy." He let her go to Rayna who was waiting to congratulate her.

"That was something else, girl." Rayna smiled brightly.

"Thank you, I didn't realize how much I wanted that until I did it." Scarlett replied.

Rayna waved Avery and Gunnar over as well. "Listen, ya'll, I'm really impressed with what I just heard. So impressed in fact I think you need to come into the office tomorrow and we need to have a meeting. You three are exactly the kind of artists I'm looking to have on my label."

"Oh my God, are you serious right now?" Gunnar asked.

"That is amazing." Avery clapped his hands.

"Wow, that's just wow." Scarlett gushed.

"I'm serious come on by and we will set some stuff up." Rayna smiled at them.

"Just one thing. I'm producing Sadie's album right now and I don't know how long that is going to take." Avery spoke up.

"Don't worry about that. I will book you guys some local gigs until you're finished with her album. Or we can put things on hold until you finish whatever works better for you three. Nothing has to be decided right now. We can come back in January and start to hammer out the details." Rayna assured them.

"We can decide what we want to do after we meet with you tomorrow." Gunnar agreed.

"Rayna, isn't that cutting things a little close? You have a dress fitting tomorrow." Scarlett reminded her.

"I have enough time to work all of it in. I don't have anything else to do tomorrow besides those two things. Tandy has me under control you need to worry about the groom." Rayna teased.

"No one can control that man. I just gently guide him to do what I want him to do. Anyway, I do have your rings and that is one more thing to check off the list. I picked them up from the jeweler earlier and I have them in a safe place." Scarlett joked back.

"Thank you, Scarlett, I don't know what we would do without you sometimes." Rayna said gratefully. It was better that she had picked up the rings that way the press wouldn't get ahold of that detail before the wedding.

"Hey, Deacon, there's an open slot that no one has signed up for right now if you wanna take it." Gunnar offered.

"That's up to the boss." Deacon retorted.

"Go on, you know you want to." Rayna gave him the Ok.

Deacon ran out to the truck and grabbed his guitar. He came back in and took the stage. "Hey, ya'll," he waited for the cheers to die down before he said anything else. "From the sounds of it most of you know who I am. For those of you who don't, I'm Deacon Claybourne and I'm gonna play one for you. This is a new song and this is the best damn place to test it out."

He strummed the opening chords on his guitar. _"I'd like to say it was perfect growing up was a fairytale, but Hollywood don't make no movies about a house up on wheels down a dirt road Mississippi tucked back in the trees. Route three box two-fifty d."_

This was the song he had written the day he got back from Mississippi. _"Well, the man my momma married had a mean streak in his blood and when he'd take it out on us. And I could my momma crying that made it hard to sleep. Route three box two-fifty d."_

"Wow, I can't believe he's opening up like that." Scarlett commented.

"Neither can I. It took me years to get this out of him." Rayna agreed with her.

" _That's where I became a man long before my time. And since I left I ain't been back, but I go back in my mind."_ His voice was powerful and thick with emotion. _"Thank god for Buford Bailey he had a pond he'd let fish. That's where I'd run off to every chance I'd get. And I pray that God was listening and he'd come rescue me. Route three box two-fifty d."_

" _Then one day my uncle pulled up in his pickup truck loaded up everything. It wasn't much, but it was everything. I'd like to say it was perfect growing up was a fairytale, but Hollywood don't make no movies about a house up on wheels down a dirt road Mississippi, but that's what made me, me. Route three box two-fifty d."_ He had tears in his eyes by the time he'd finished. He looked over at Rayna and Scarlett and he could see that they were wiping tears away as well. "Thank ya'll for lettin' me play that for you." He said before he stepped down.

* * *

"Hey, babe," Rayna said as she stepped into the writers' room at the office.

"What do you need?" Deacon asked. He was just playing around at the moment. Elvis laid by his feet as usual. The dog really had become the company mascot.

"I need a favor from you." She broached the subject.

"What are you craving this time?" He asked her jokingly.

"I don't need you to go get me food. I need you to go check on Sadie for me. I haven't heard from her in a couple of days and I'm starting to get worried." She told him.

"Ok, if it'll make you feel better I'll go check on her for you. I just want you to know you're interrupting my work." He gave her a lopsided grin.

"I'd do it myself, but I have a marathon day, babe. I have to meet with Scarlett, Gunnar, and Avery and I have to go be fitted for my dress. Which hopefully won't have to be taken out too much, but with the way these boys have me eating lately that's not gonna happen." She stuck her bottom lip out.

"Ok, ok, I'm goin' you didn't have to lay it on so thick." He sat his guitar down and got up. "You look gorgeous by the way. I know that you don't see it right now, but you're glowin' and this is the sexiest I've ever seen you." He whispered in her ear.

"Mhmm, someone is trying to get laid tonight." She groaned in the back of her throat.

"Only always, baby, only always." He planted a quick kiss on her lips before he left.

"Sadie," Deacon knocked on her front door. "Hey, Sadie, you home?" He knocked a little louder. "Sadie, come on your car is in the driveway. You gotta be here. I'm starting to get worried. If you don't come to the door I'm gonna have to break it down."

Sadie opened the door only a crack. "Deacon, what are you doing here?" She made sure to stay in the shadows so he didn't see the left side of her face.

"No one has heard anything from you in a few days and I wanted to come make sure you are doing ok." He explained to her. He put his hands in his pockets.

"That's sweet of you to worry that way, Big Brother, I'm just a little under the weather. I'd invite you to come in, but I don't want to give you anything that Rayna will catch. That's not good for her or the babies." She teased half heartedly.

"That would be a problem if I thought for a minute you were actually sick, Little Sister." He called her on her bullshit.

She just stared back at him like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Sadie, I can't help you unless you tell me what's really goin' on." He told her patiently.

"Ok, come on in." She opened the door wider to allow his entry. She shut the door behind him quickly and turned to face him. "As you can see this is what's going on." She pointed to her left eye.

"What happened?" He asked calmly.

"It was nothing I just had a little too much to drink and I hit my eye on the cabinet." She lied.

He arched his eyebrow at her. "What if I told you that's far from the first time I've heard an excuse like that?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." She denied.

He leaned up against the wall with his hands in his back pockets. "Once upon time there was this boy from Mississippi his daddy was an abusive drunk and his momma was in denial about it. That little boy he watched time and time again as his daddy beat the hell out of his momma and sister until one day he had enough and stood up to him. He got the crap beat out of him, but it didn't stop him from stepping up again and again until finally he got big enough and he stomped the hell out of his daddy. He never laid a hand on any of them again. Then one morning the boy got in his truck, drove all the way to Nashville and he never looked back. He got a gig playin' guitar for this redhead he fell madly in love with and that's that."

"Deacon, I don't know what to say to that." She looked at him in awe of the story he'd just told her.

"You tell me everything and you let me help you. Sadie, I don't know if I was too subtle for you just now or what, but the boy in that story was me. I normally don't talk 'bout it all that much, but if it helps you tell me your truth then it was worth it." That was the easiest that story had ever come out of him. He could see that his friend was struggling and maybe just maybe it was something she needed to hear.

"It's my ex he's an abusive son of a bitch. I was young and stupid when I married him. I was shocked the first time that he hit me. Of course he was sorry afterwards and he promised that he'd never do it again. I shouldn't have been surprised when it kept happening over and over. I was too embarrassed to do anything about it. Finally, one day I had enough and I filed for divorce and never looked back." She explained to him.

"That doesn't explain your eye." Deacon said quietly fuming with rage.

"He showed up on my front porch a couple of nights ago and he left me with this as a parting gift. He says he wants what he has coming to him. He thinks that he's entitled to his cut from my music." Sadie went on.

"Did you call the police?" He questioned.

"I have a temporary restraining order against him. He can't come within a hundred feet of me or he will be arrested." She replied.

"If you need anything at all you let me and Ray know. We have a guest room you can stay in if you need to and I have a house I'm not using. Scarlett wouldn't mind a roommate." He put his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eye to let her know he was there for her.

"Deacon, no. You and Rayna both have other things to worry about. You're getting ready to get married and you have twins on the way. I don't want you to worry yourself with me and I don't want you to tell Rayna. I can take care of this. It's my own fault for letting him hit me in the first place." She waved off his concern.

"Hey, don't do that. Don't blame yourself it's not your fault. Love makes you blind to a lot of things and sometimes it puts you in denial. Still to this day you can't get my momma to own up to the fact that my daddy was a bastard that beat on her for no reason. Ray and I were playin' Biloxi the night I got the call he finally beat her bad enough to put her in the hospital. She'd still be with him if it wasn't for the fact that he went to jail over it. I blamed myself for the longest time if I'd never left he wouldn't hit her again because I would have been there to protect her. I've recently come to realize that it wasn't my fault it was his for ever putting a hand on her. So this wasn't your fault either this is entirely on him." He told her firmly.

"You're a damn good friend to have, Deacon. Rayna is one lucky woman." She smiled at him and wiped away a tear.

"I'm the lucky one I've only screwed up a million different ways with her and she took me back. Why don't you go put something on to cover up that eye and then come back to the office with me? You shouldn't be alone right now." He suggested.

"Yeah, I'd like that a lot." She agreed. "Promise me that you won't say anything to Rayna about this."

"Sadie, that's your story to tell when you're ready. Just know I'm here if you ever want to talk I do know what you're going through." He offered again.

"You worry too much. I'm gonna be fine." She assured him with a smile.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you enjoyed it. I know that there was a lot going on this chapter, but I promise everything has a purpose. Next chapter will cover the wedding, so it's going to be a little longer than normal or I may split it into two chapters so nothing gets rushed. Until next time please review.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 13

"There he is, there's my baby brother." Beverly exclaimed and pulled Deacon into a big hug.

"Hey, Beverly," Deacon hugged her back not that he had much of a choice in the matter. She ambushed him like she always did.

"I've safely delivered these two and you're on your own with them until the rehearsal tonight. I'll be in the writer's room with Gunnar if you need anything, but hopefully you can make it through a few hours without me." Scarlett patted her uncle on the back.

"Thank you, Scarlett, you're the greatest best man in the history of the world." He kissed her cheek.

"I know I am you don't have to tell me. Stay out of trouble for a few hours, so I can get some work done." Scarlett waved over her shoulder at him.

"Momma, it's really good to see you. I'm so glad that you came." He smiled widely as he hugged his mother.

"It's not every day that my only little boy gets married I wasn't gonna miss this for anything in the world." June hugged him and kissed both of his cheeks.

"Ray, is in her office doin' whatever it is she does and I know she's real excited 'bout seein' ya'll. Let's go on back. Did Scarlett get ya'll settled in alright at the house?" He questioned as he led them back to Rayna's office.

"She got us all set up. You don't have to worry so much and stress yourself out." June assured him.

"Babe, you're not busy right now are you?" He stuck his head into her office.

"No, I'm not busy at all. Bucky took all my work away from me and told me that it would keep for a couple weeks." Rayna replied.

"Good I've got a couple people here who wanna see you." He smiled. "Alright, momma, have at her. We all know you wanted to see her more than me anyway." He laughed.

"Oh, sweetie, look at you. You are glowin'." June gushed and held her arms open to Rayna.

"June, it is so good to see you." Rayna hugged her soon to be mother-in-law.

"Let me get a good look at you. Is Deacon John takin' good care of you and my grandbabies?" June's hands went to her belly and rubbed it.

"He is taking very good care of all of us. He is being the perfect southern gentleman that I know he was raised to be for a change." Rayna winked. "Hi, Beverly, did you have a good flight?" It took everything in her to be civil to her, but she did it for Deacon's sake.

"Yeah it was good. How are you feeling?" Beverly was also trying for her brother's sake.

"Tired all the time. I fall asleep on Deacon and the girls in the middle of conversations sometimes. That's only when I'm not eating everything I can get my hands on. These boys are a handful just like their daddy." Rayna rubbed her belly.

"How many times do I gotta tell you that those boys are high maintenance like their momma?" Deacon arched his eyebrow at her.

"It wasn't funny the last time you said it and it's still not funny. Why don't you go take Bev where you were gonna take her and I'll entertain your momma? As long as it gets you out of my hair for a couple hours and keeps you entertained and out of trouble." Rayna suggested to him.

"Bev, you and I are headed to the studio for the afternoon. I just have to check in with my best man and make sure all my stuff is in order. She's gonna kill me. She just told me not five minutes ago not to disturb her until later." Deacon put his arm around his sister's shoulders.

"You sure you wanna take me to the studio with you, baby brother? I might show you up." Beverly teased him.

"I think I can handle it. I'm surrounded by women on a daily basis. I've gotten used to the fact that I'm always wrong. Which reminds me at some point today I've got to get you together with Tandy she wanted to talk to you. Personally if it were me I'd be scared." Deacon laughed.

"Deacon, I don't know what you're worried about the two of them will probably get along fine. They can bond over how we both don't listen and are stupid in love with each other." Rayna told him.

"True, alright I will return this one here in one piece in plenty of time to get ready for the rehearsal." Deacon kissed her quickly.

"You two have fun." Rayna smiled and sent him on his way.

"Sweetie, you can't take Beverly to heart. She just feels like her brother abandoned her because he got out and made a life for himself. Because he made that life with you she blames you." June told her once her children had gone.

"I suppose it's only fitting. My sister isn't too fond of Deacon. What she doesn't realize is Deacon saved my life. I don't know what I would have done without him after my father kicked me out." Rayna replied.

"Deacon has been doing that since he was a little boy. He tries so hard to save everyone else that he forgets that he needs to save himself sometimes. I know that's why he hasn't been able to face me in so long. In his eyes he became the man that he despises the most." June wasn't as clueless as her son thought she was.

"If it helps any he never raised a hand to me. I wouldn't have given him another chance if he had. He's an amazing father and I know he's gonna be a great husband. He finally became the man I always knew he could be." Rayna spoke candidly.

"I don't blame you one little bit for shielding your daughter from him. You do what you have to in order to protect your children. I never did that for my kids and they've both had their share of demons they needed to fight because of it." June admitted.

Rayna breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, you have no idea how difficult it was for me to face him every day and not tell him. I knew deep down that he would have never done anything to hurt Maddie, but I couldn't trust him until he was sober. Sober he is the best man that you've ever met, but when he's drunk it's a different story. I blamed myself for years for not being strong enough to keep him sober I couldn't let my daughter ever feel that way."

"You're a much stronger woman than I've ever been. I'd still be with Paul if he hadn't damn near killed me. You're the angel that rescued my son and saved him from himself I'll always be grateful to you for that." June's eyes teared up.

Rayna blinked back tears. "Would you like to meet the girls?"

"I would love to meet them. They are all Deacon John ever talks about. He's absolutely crazy about them." June smiled.

"They are crazy about him too." Rayna smiled back.

* * *

"Hey, ya'll, we aren't interrupting are we?" Deacon stuck his head into the room where Avery and Sadie were working.

"Not at all, we were just discussing some things. Deacon, when you get back from your honeymoon I'm gonna want you to lay down some guitar tracks." Avery told him.

"I can do that. I actually have someone that I want Sadie to meet." Deacon pointed at Beverly. "Sadie Stone, this is my sister Beverly O'Connor. Bev, this is my friend Sadie." He introduced them.

Sadie stood up and offered her hand to Beverly. "It's nice to meet you. I've been working with your daughter a lot lately and she is really talented."

Beverly shook her hand. "Thank you, it's so nice to meet you too."

"Beverly, it's good to see you again." Avery nodded in her direction.

"It's good to see you too, Avery." Beverly smiled at him.

"We will let ya'll get back to work I just wanted to stop in and see how you were doing." Deacon said.

"Deacon, you have some very interesting friends." Beverly commented once they walked into another studio.

"Bucky refers to them as my wayward musicians. I've taken them under my wing to help them out a little." Deacon shrugged.

"You seem like you're really happy, baby brother. I'm glad you finally found that." She told him.

"I am really happy, Bev. Thank you for tryin'. I know how difficult it is for you and how much you don't like Rayna." He replied.

"It's not that I don't like her. It's that I always thought she took you away from us. I can see now that it was your choice. There's no way I could have honestly expected you to stay there and take everything that daddy threw at you. It's you I resented for getting out and staying out." She admitted to him.

"Bev, I couldn't stay. Any scenario where I stayed I turned into Paul Claybourne and we both know it. It was a matter of time before I killed him or he killed me. He never looked at me the same after I finally managed to beat him and he was always just one binge away from getting back at me for that." He ran his hand over his beard.

"You're a better man than he ever was, Deacon. You're nothing like him." She assured him.

"Bev, you and momma should think about movin' here. She can't keep pushin' herself like she has been. I wanna take care of her. And you can always find another job. Maybe pick up some actual gigs singing." He suggested. He didn't know where that came from, but it seemed right.

"I'll think about it, Deacon." She smiled at him.

"What do you say to layin' down some background vocals for me?" He asked.

"Yeah, I can do that." She agreed quickly.

"Let's get to work then. I'm on a very tight schedule and my bride to be will kill me if I'm late to our rehearsal dinner." He grinned.

"I told you she kept you on a tight leash." Bev laughed.

"Funny, Bev, really funny." Deacon rolled his eyes.

* * *

"Well, here it is what do you girls think?" Rayna stepped into the room wearing her wedding dress. It was simple lace dress that hid her baby bump well.

"It's beautiful." Maddie said.

"You look pretty, mom." Daphne smiled.

"You're gorgeous, babe." Tandy agreed with her nieces.

"I don't look like a beached whale?" Rayna questioned.

"No, you don't look like a beached whale. I think you were more obviously pregnant with Maddie." Tandy tried to make her feel better.

"Don't lie to the pregnant woman. I know that I'm fat." Rayna dismissed what she'd said.

"You're not fat you're just pregnant. Seriously, babe, I've seen pregnant women way bigger than you in a wedding dress." Tandy did some fast talking.

Maddie jumped up and grabbed Daphne's hand when the doorbell rang. "Thank God, we are going to go answer the door and let you two talk about weird pregnancy crap."

"She couldn't be more like her father if she tried sometimes. I mention anything that makes him just a little uncomfortable and suddenly remembers that he has something to do in the other room." Rayna laughed.

"Babe, I have to ask you one last time. Are you sure about this?" Tandy asked.

"Tandy, I'm positive. He's the man I want to spend the rest of my life with." Rayna assured her.

"That's all I needed to hear." Tandy smiled at her.

"Ya'll don't need any help in here do you? I left momma and grandma in the girls' care and they are entertaining them." Scarlett stuck her head into the room.

"I just need to change out of this dress and then there is nothing else that we have to do tonight. We made it through the rehearsal a hell of more smoothly than I thought we would." Rayna answered her.

"I'll go help the girls keep those two entertained lord knows what my momma will get up to when left to her own devices." Scarlett sighed.

"Be nice to your mother, Scarlett, her I like unlike your uncle." Tandy told her.

Scarlett shared a look with Rayna.

"I know; I can't explain it either. Tandy and Beverly like no one, but they like each other. How was your uncle when you left him?" Rayna questioned.

"He was good, I may or may not have left the front door unlocked and set him up to be kidnapped by Will, Gunnar, and Avery tonight, but the man was gonna sit alone and watch Old Yeller. I couldn't let that happen." Scarlett retorted.

"He normally only watches Old Yeller on his birthday. I guess the night before his wedding is somehow appropriate in the Deacon universe too though. Only my husband to be does things like that." Rayna shook her head and started to take her dress off.

"I'll give you one thing. This dress is a vast improvement over the one you wore at your last wedding." Tandy commented.

"What were we thinking with that dress? But even that dress was an improvement on the one I was gonna marry Luke in." Rayna scoffed.

"That dress needed to be killed with fire. I'll just say that. Sadie showed Deacon and I a picture of it and his words were. 'Vince and I once ended up at a frat party where they were dressed like that.' That was after he observed that friends don't let other friends wear anything that ugly." Scarlett laughed.

"That dress is actually in the back of my closet you can borrow it for the photo shoot you and the boys do for your band. I think it's totally you." Rayna teased.

"No thank you, I'm just gonna go see what's taking the boys so long to kidnap my uncle." Scarlett excused herself.

"She's right, Babe, that dress was hideous. Deacon and I actually agree on that." Tandy helped her out of her dress.

Rayna put on a pair of jeans and one of Deacon's t-shirts. "Guess what? If you can get along with Beverly you can get along with Deacon. So, stop acting like you can't stand him and give him a chance." She put her arm around her sister.

"Come on, let's go downstairs I'm drinking double tonight for the both of us and I've earned it." Tandy rolled her eyes.

* * *

"I'm comin', I'm comin' keep your pants on." Deacon shuffled to his front door and opened it.

"Deacon, I'm really glad I caught you. I have a little bit of an emergency." Gunnar bounced up and down on the balls of his feet. This plan was better than the whole sneak in and ambush Deacon thing that Scarlett had suggested.

"Gunnar, if it's an emergency dial nine-one-one. I just want to sit here on my couch in peace tonight and watch Old Yeller. After tomorrow I'm never gonna get to watch another movie I like ever again my girls like to hog the TV." Deacon sighed.

"Please? I could really use some of your Deacon man wisdom and words to live by in this situation." Gunnar was on the cusp of begging.

"Alright, come on in." Deacon sighed.

"Actually, I thought you could come out to listen to this band with me and we could talk while you work. I know Rayna has actively tasked all of us with finding new talent." Gunnar chuckled nervously and gave him a half grin.

"Ok, sure, but you're drivin' and you're havin' me back here in enough time to get a good night's sleep. I'm gettin' married in the mornin' and I don't wanna be all worn out and tired." Deacon grabbed his leather jacket and threw it on over his usual flannel shirt.

"Of course I'll have you back home at a decent hour." Gunnar told a little white lie.

Deacon made sure that his phone was charged and he pocketed his wallet. He locked the door behind him and he got into the passenger seat of Gunnar's car.

Gunnar got behind the wheel and locked the doors to prevent Deacon from escaping.

Will and Avery popped up from the back seat once Gunnar pulled out on the road.

"Welcome to your bachelor party, Freakin' Deacon," Will cheered.

"Hell yeah, we are gonna celebrate tonight." Avery clapped his hands.

"You assholes have to been kiddin' me right now. Let me out of this damn car." Deacon tried the door handle, but he couldn't get it open.

"You're trapped with us you might as well get used to it. The child safety locks are on the doors. We are headed to Memphis to hit up some karaoke bars. You had an early rehearsal dinner tonight and that leaves of plenty of time to get there and back so you can sleep." Gunnar informed him.

"This is one sad bachelor party. We have a recoverin' alcoholic, a newlywed, a divorcee, and howdy doody. But if we are goin' to Memphis we are gonna make the most of this. I know a pretty good club when can hit up that has awesome blues music." Deacon relented. He might as well make the most out of this if he was being forced against his will.

"That's what I'm talkin' 'bout." Will took a pull off of a flask and handed it to Avery.

"Don't mind if I do." Avery took a drink.

"At this rate, I'm gonna be the DD for my own damn bachelor party." Deacon shook his head. "Gunnar, pull over ya'll young pups can drink I can't. I'll drive just don't dog ass drunk before we get to Memphis."

"Nope, no way. On orders from your best man I'm not to pull this car over while there's a chance you can escape and walk home. You're having fun whether you want to or not tonight." Gunnar sold Scarlett out.

"Deacon, you can lay some of that mystical man wisdom of yours one me when it comes to dealing with pregnant women. Juliette is volatile and unstable on a good day her with raging hormones is not a good day for anyone involved." Avery patted his shoulder.

"If ya'll are gonna refer to it as man wisdom I'm gonna givin' you advice. Whatever it is she wants you to do within reason you do it for her. You tell her how pretty she looks and that she's not fat she's creatin' human life. You come up behind her and you steal a kiss just because you can, you tell her that just knowin' she's carryin' your baby makes you feel like more of a man, and you send her flowers for no reason at all. Just the little things like that." Deacon advised him.

"Forget writin' songs we are gonna write down everything that comes out of his mouth about relationships and make a book out of it. We could make a fortune." Will took his flask back from Avery and took another pull off of it.

* * *

"Scarlett, you are the worst best man in the history of the world. Your exes have kidnapped me and are in the process of takin' me to Memphis for the night along with Will." Scarlett read the text her uncle had sent her out loud.

"Tell the big baby I said to suck it up and let those boys have their fun with him. They all look up to him. He's like this sage old wise man spewing forth words of wisdom wherever he goes." Sadie took a gulp out of her wine glass.

"Gunnar and Avery call it Deacon's man wisdom." Scarlett was sitting on the floor.

"He's so wise it's annoying sometimes. Maddie, I can't see my toes how do they look?" Juliette asked.

"They'd look better if you'd be still." Maddie told her.

"Hey, not all us can be perfect looking pregnant women like your mother. We are damn near the same length along in our pregnancies and I look like an oompa loompa and I'm not even the one carrying twins." Juliette groaned.

"Juliette, if it makes you feel any better I really can't see my toes either. Deacon ties my shoes for me so I don't have to try to do it." Rayna spoke up.

"Here's another text from Deacon. Scarlett I'm murdering your exes and setting you up for it. You can be called the Ex Killer and I will support you in the form of a lawyer." Scarlett read.

"The exes? That might actually be the perfect name for your band instead of all of your first initials combined." Rayna announced brightly.

"Mom, keep your toes still." Daphne scolded her playfully.

"Great news, Beverly and I managed to find more wine. Why it was in the laundry room I don't want to know, but we found it." Tandy held up two bottles of wine triumphantly.

"That's because I've never lived with sober Deacon before and I wasn't sure of the rules. He found the wine I hid in the bathroom and that's when he told me it was ok to just leave it out in the open where he could see it." Rayna admitted sheepishly.

"I'm sorry you asked." Beverly laughed.

"So am I." Tandy agreed. Those two getting along probably wasn't good for anyone.

* * *

"Alright, ya'll try to keep up. I can't believe this. I'm the only person who can become the DD at their own bachelor party and manage to pick up another stray on the way home." Deacon shook his head as he loaded all the guys into Gunnar's car. They'd run into JC playing one of the clubs and he had naturally decided to tag along with them.

"If any of you have to puke or use the bathroom do it before we get on the road it's a long way back to Nashville and I don't want any of you pukin' or pissin' on yourselves." He laid down the law.

"Will, I think he's talkin' 'bout you, you're the least sober of all of us." Gunnar grinned goofily.

"It's alright I'll just get in the back and pass out." Will swayed on his feet.

"Deacon, are we bringing our new buddy JC home with us?" Avery slurred his words.

"Yes we are, that's why we collected his guitar and put it in back of the car earlier." Deacon told him patiently. He was beginning to love Rayna even more for ever putting up with him when he was acting like this.

"Uncle Deacon, you really don't have to give me a ride back I can catch the bus that's how I got here." JC said.

"Don't be ridiculous. I'm not just gonna leave you to sleep in the bus station for the night. You're my godson I'm bringing you home with me and you're coming to my wedding tomorrow. I'm not getting any arguments out of you. Also you're the soberest one out of ya'll and I need someone to put some decent music on this radio." Deacon finally herded them all into the car and got behind the wheel.

"Deacon, let's stop for food on the way home." Will said excitedly.

"We will. We are gonna stop at a diner that I know and hopefully by then you'll have slept some of that alcohol off and I can take you juveniles into public and trust you to behave yourselves." Deacon put the car in gear and started on the road to home.

* * *

Rayna woke to her phone buzzing on her bedside table. She moved carefully so she didn't wake her sister who was sharing the bed with her. She smiled when she read the text. _Meet me in ten minutes, Deacon._ She didn't care that it was four in the morning she got up and threw some clothes on. He didn't have to tell her where to meet him she knew the spot he was talking about.

Almost exactly ten minutes later she pulled into the park. Deacon already stood outside his truck waiting for her. He opened her car door for her and took her hand when she climbed out.

"It looks like you had an exciting night." She teased him and leaned into his side.

"The exes and Will took me to Memphis for my bachelor party and I ended up being the DD and we ended up bringing JC home with us. They are all passed out at my house right now. I just wanted to see you and spend some time with you before things got really crazy." He put his arm around her shoulders and they took a seat on the steps.

"That sounds about like how my bachelorette party went. Juliette, the girls and I were the only ones sober, but we had fun." She laid her head on his shoulder.

"I would never admit it to those knuckle heads, but I had fun too. It was really nice of them to go through all that trouble for me." He leaned his head against hers.

"Can you believe that this is finally happening for us? In about twelve hours we are gonna be married." She mused.

"I always knew that it would happen one day. I just didn't know how long it was going to take." He kissed the top of her head.

They sat there like that until the sun started to come up.

"I better get home before they realize I'm missing." Rayna grunted as she got to her feet with some effort.

Deacon walked her to her car and planted a lingering kiss on her lips. "I love you and I will see you in a few hours soon to be Mrs. Claybourne."

"I love you too. I can't wait to be Mrs. Claybourne." She kissed him one last time before she got in the car and drove off.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter for you guys. I decided to just do a fun little chapter before we get to the wedding next chapter I promise it is worth the wait. Until next time please review.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are It's Your Love by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill and Hearts Are Breaking Across Texas by Aaron Watson.

* * *

Chapter 14

"What in the world did you guys do last night?" Scarlett surveyed her uncle's living room. Gunnar was passed out on the floor his arms curled around a tequila bottle. Will was propped up in the chair with his cowboy hat still on his head. Avery snored at one end of the couch and JC was face down on the other.

"They kidnapped me, took me to Memphis, and then got so drunk I had to be the DD. It was a pretty good night. You know it's a great night when you pick up a stray." Deacon took a sip out of his coffee cup.

"How are you up already? I know Rayna snuck back into the house at six this morning. I can't imagine that you had nothing to do with that." She teased him.

"Ray and I don't play by the rules we never have. We spent almost two hours together watching the sun come up. What are you doing here already?" He asked in reply.

"Uncle Deacon, it's eleven you're getting married in six hours. You need all the help you can get." She arched her eyebrow at him.

"Ok, I do need help. I have four drunk guys in my living room. I'm not sure how to handle that. This is more Rayna's territory. She knows how to deal with situations such as these I was normally one of the guys passed out drunk." He chuckled.

"I'll take care of them. You just worry about yourself. I'm your best man that is my job." She assured him.

"Are your momma and grandma comin' back over here or are they just gonna help Ray get ready?" He asked.

"They are gonna help her I think. Momma and Tandy have taken a real liking to each other." She answered him.

"I know they have and that scares the shit out of me. Your momma is being remarkably adult about all of this and I'm not entirely sure that I shouldn't be worried about that." He mused.

"I know what you mean. Just don't worry about that right now. The only thing you need to concentrate on is getting ready and remembering your vows. Which I hope you've had done for awhile now." She told him.

"I've had them done. You don't have to worry about me." He assured her.

"Deacon, who is the guy on the couch with Avery?" She wore a confused expression on her face.

"That's my godson. He is Vince's son and I don't think he really has anywhere else to go. He lives in an apartment with like three other guys and he's barely eighteen. I've taken in a stray just don't tell Rayna that." He explained.

"You two both have a habit of taking in strays. Now go take a shower or something while I take care of this situation." She ordered with a pointed finger.

"Yes, ma'am." He chuckled and walked down the hall.

Scarlett grabbed a pot and a wooden spoon and started beating it to wake them up. "Come on, boys, rise and shine. We have places to be today and not a lot of time to get there."

"Ow, shit, what the hell?" Will sat up with a groan.

"Make it stop," Avery shielded his eyes from the light. He wasn't even sure where he was at the moment.

Gunnar sat bolt upright on the floor like a zombie. "Where the hell am I?"

JC sat up and felt his head like he was looking for something. "Where'd my hat go?"

"Ya'll are a sorry bunch. I'll put some more coffee on. Avery, call your wife she would like to know that you aren't dead." She went to the coffee maker and poured them all a cup before putting a fresh pot on.

* * *

Rayna sat at a vanity with curlers in her hair. She picked up a brush and applied a coat of gloss to her lips. Normally she had a glam squad to take care of things like this for her, but today she wanted to be more low key. This was more her and Deacon's speed. They had started out doing these things for themselves. They were so broke at times that she'd had to go shopping in his closet and repurposed his clothes for her use.

"Rayna, you look absolutely gorgeous." A tall slim older woman stood in the doorway of the bridal room looking at her. Her brown hair had streaks of silver on the sides.

"Aunt Dottie, I didn't think you were going to be here until the ceremony." Rayna stood and hugged her aunt.

"I had to come see my favorite girl before she got married. I saw those girls of yours and they are absolutely adorable." Dottie Wyatt was Lamar's younger sister.

"They are growing like weeds it's like every time I blink they grow another inch." Rayna smiled.

"Your momma would be so proud of you. I know that Lamar is proud as a peacock that he's finally getting grandsons." Dottie smiled back.

"I know how happy he is about that. Deacon is pretty damn proud of himself too. I'm surprised he isn't walking around beating on his chest bragging about how much of a man he is." Rayna chuckled.

"I'll have to have a word with that boy and make sure he knows that he has to take care of my girls." Dottie said knowingly.

"Aunt Dottie, he takes better care of us than I ever thought possible. You have nothing to worry about when it comes to that." Rayna assured her.

"I'm gonna go find him and catch up. I know that your daddy wants to spend some time with you." Dottie hugged her again and left.

"Rayna," Lamar said tentatively as he walked into the room.

"Daddy," Rayna nodded her head.

"You are breathtaking. If that boy has any good sense he will never do anything to screw up again." Lamar had a small smile

"He's a man not a boy and he's ready for this. If I didn't think he was I wouldn't be doing this with him trust me on that." Rayna assured him.

"I know I've never made a secret of my dislike for Deacon Claybourne or your chosen path in life, but I am glad to see you so happy and successful. I have something for you." He pulled a diamond pendant necklace out of his pocket. "This belonged to your momma. I gave it to her the night she played the Opry for the first time. I know that she'd want you to have it." He fastened it around her neck.

"Thank you, daddy, this is gorgeous." Rayna gave him a smile.

"I think I understand it now. He was her Deacon. No matter how much I loved her she couldn't love me back in that way. And he's your Watty as much as I don't like it I have to accept it. I'm not saying I'm gonna change, but I'm saying I'll try for your sake." He gave her a genuine smile in return.

"Daddy, thank you, you have no idea how much that means to me. He really is a good man and I've never been loved as well as when I'm with him." She was touched at her father's peace offering. She knew how hard that was for him.

"I haven't always shown it the way I should, but I only want you to be happy and taken care of." He hugged her and let one of his hands rest on her belly. "How are my grandsons? These boys have quite the legacy resting on them. I hope they know that."

"They know. They are the grandsons of Lamar and Virginia Wyatt and they have Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne for parents. If that's not a lot to live up to I don't know what is." She hugged him just a little tighter than she normally did.

His phone rang and broke the moment. He looked down at the screen and saw that it was Albert his personal investigator. "Excuse me, I have to take this." He stepped out into the hall. "Albert, tell me that you have something on Conrad." He spoke lowly so no one else overheard him.

* * *

"Hey, JC, I'm glad that you made it." Deacon stood at the back of the chapel greeting people. They had chosen a farm for their wedding. An old barn had been converted into a church and the reception would be held in another barn.

"Thanks for inviting me and thanks for getting me home last night. I was fine until I started pulling on that flask with Will. That cowboy can drink that's for sure." JC shook his hand.

"It's not a problem at all. I'm glad you're here and I was happy to give you a lift home last night. Memphis is not the place where you want to sleep in a bus station. Trust me I know. Your daddy and I played a gig up there one night and we had to sleep in the bus station. It's not an experience I ever want to relive." Deacon chuckled. He waved Maddie and Daphne over. "Let me introduce you to my girls. Maddie, Daphne, this is JC."

"Hi," Daphne gave him a big grin.

"Hey," Maddie's cheeks flushed red.

"It's nice to meet both ya'll. I better get on in there Will and Gunnar are savin' me a seat." JC smiled and walked in.

"Maddie, you're blushing, you like him." Daphne teased her sister.

"Daphne, I do not. Stop." Maddie hissed at her sister through gritted teeth.

"Squirt, give your sister a break. It's not her fault she has a crush on JC." Deacon did nothing to help matters.

"Oh my God, you are both super embarrassing. I'm gonna go see how mom is doing and I'm gonna leave you two alone to embarrass each other." Maddie groaned and stalked off.

Deacon and Daphne both tried hard to keep a straight face.

"She is totally crushing on him." Daphne laughed.

"I know she is." Deacon agreed with a laugh.

* * *

"Alright, Uncle Deacon, it's time. Are you ready for this?" Scarlett whispered to Deacon as the music for the bridal procession started.

"Scarlett, I've been ready for this since the day I met her." Deacon whispered back. He smiled as he watched the girls and then Tandy walk up the aisle.

" _Don't screw this up, pal."_ Tandy mouthed to him before taking her place.

Deacon smirked at her and then his eyes shifted to Rayna who had just started to walk down the aisle on Lamar's arm. His breath hitched in his throat and he went weak in the knees. He'd never seen a more beautiful sight in his entire life. He stepped down to meet her.

Lamar placed Rayna's hand in Deacon's and a look of understanding passed between the two men.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of Deacon John Claybourne and Rayna Alisia Jaymes. If anyone among us know of any reason these two should not be joined in holy matrimony speak now or forever hold your peace." Watty was conducting the ceremony. It was only fitting because they wouldn't have met without him. He gave an appropriate pause before he continued. "Who gives this woman to this man?"

"My girls and I do." Lamar answered indicating Tandy, Maddie, and Daphne. He took his seat.

"Alright, I don't see the point in beating around the bush to get the point. Those two have done enough of that for us. Let's get to the vows." Watty drew the expected chuckles. "Deacon, do you take Rayna to be your lawfully wedded wife for better or for worse for richer or for poorer to have and to hold in sickness and in health forsaking all others 'til death do you part?"

"I do," Deacon answered firmly.

"Rayna, do you take Deacon to be your lawfully wedded husband for better or for worse for richer or for poorer to have and to hold in sickness and in health forsaking all others 'til death do you part?" Watty asked the same question of Rayna.

"I do," Rayna looked at Deacon as she spoke the words.

"'Cause these two are stubborn they've made things easy on me and wrote their own vows. Deacon turn to Rayna and recite your vows." Watty instructed.

Deacon took both Rayna's hands in his and looked into her eyes. "Ray, I knew that this moment was comin' the moment I met you. I just never dreamed it'd take us this long to get here. You've loved me at my worst and you stood by me at my best. And you've kicked my ass into gear when the occasion called for it too. The fact that I'm even drawin' breath today is a testament to how strong willed you are and that you don't give up when you believe in somethin'. I've done a lot of stupid things in my life, but not lovin' you was never one of them. I've loved you since the moment I met you and I'll love you 'til the day I die. It's Maddie, it's Daphne, it's those boys, it's you, and it's me. I know how to love you now, baby." He swiped away the tear that trickled from the corner of his eye.

"Now, Rayna, recite your vows to Deacon." Watty instructed. He was surprised he'd made it this far without them kissing each other before it was time.

"Deacon, from the first time I saw you smile and the first note I heard you play on a guitar I've loved you. I've loved you when you made me want to hate you and I've loved you when I shouldn't. I love you now and that has never not been true. There is no difference between you and music to me. You were with me from the beginning and you saw me through some of the most difficult days of my life. When everything else went to hell around me you were the one standing beside me and telling me to just sing my way through it and prove 'em wrong. There would be no Rayna Jaymes without Deacon Claybourne everything that I am and everything that we have created together begins and ends with you. We are both tangled up in this complicated thing we have together and I wouldn't have it any other way." Rayna squeezed his hands tightly as a tear slid down her face.

"Now may I have the rings?" Watty held out his hand.

Scarlett placed both the rings in his hand.

"Deacon, put that ring on her finger and repeat after me." Watty handed the ring to Deacon. "With this ring I thee wed."

Deacon slipped the ring on Rayna's finger. "With this ring I thee wed."

"Rayna, same thing." Watty handed her the other ring.

Rayna put the ring on Deacon's finger. "With this ring I thee wed."

"Now, by the power vested in me by God and the state of Tennessee I now pronounce you husband and wife." Watty paused just a moment because he could see how anxious Deacon was to get to the next part. "Son, go on and kiss your bride."

Deacon pulled Rayna into his arms and kissed her passionately. She wrapped her arms around his neck and they stayed that way until the need for oxygen screamed through their brains and they both pulled back breathing heavily and grinning.

"Ladies and gentleman it's my pleasure to present to you Mr. and Mrs. Deacon John Claybourne what God hath joined together let no man tear asunder." Watty announced grandly.

* * *

"Alright, girls get over here. We are gonna need your help for this." Deacon called Maddie and Daphne over. He and Rayna were getting ready to cut the cake. They were trying their best to include them both in everything. He picked up the silver cake knife. "Let's all get ahold of this now." He put his hand on top of Rayna's and the girls grabbed on where they could. They cut the first piece of cake.

They took turns feeding each other or rather smashing cake into each other's faces.

Rayna kissed the icing off Deacon's nose. "We don't waste cake in this family. One of your boys has a sweet tooth."

"He gets it from his momma." Deacon kissed her deeply.

Rayna had left their dance as husband and wife up to Deacon. It was really the only thing he'd requested any input in and she'd been more than happy to let him have it.

Will and Sadie took the stage to perform it for them.

Deacon took Rayna in his arms and held her tight as the music started to play.

" _Yeah, mmm, dancing in dark middle of the night. Taking your heart and holding it tight. Emotional touch touching my skin and asking you do what you've been doin' all over again. Oh, it's a beautiful thing don't think I can keep it all in. I just gotta let you know what it is that won't let me go."_ Will sang.

Deacon and Rayna pressed their foreheads together and swayed to the rhythm of the music. Her arms were around his neck and his were around her waist.

" _It's your love it just something to me sends a shock right through me I can't get enough. And if you wonder about the spell I'm under. Oh, it's your love."_ Will and Sadie sang together.

"Baby, if I'm dreamin' I don't ever wanna wake up." Deacon whispered softly.

" _Better than I was more than I am and all of this happened by taking your hand. And who I am now is who I wanted to be. Now that we're together I'm stronger ever I'm happy and free. Oh, it's a beautiful don't think I can keep it all in. And if ask why I've changed. All I gotta do is say your sweet name."_

"I feel the same way, Deacon. I've waited a long time to be your wife and this was worth every minute of it." Rayna laid her head on his shoulder.

" _It's your love it just something to me sends a shock right through me I can't get enough. And if you wonder about the spell I'm under. Oh, it's your love."_

"I love you so damn much, Mrs. Claybourne." A smile came to Deacon's face as he said the words.

" _Oh, it's a beautiful thing don't think I can keep it all in. I just gotta let you know what it is that won't let me go. It's your love it just does something to me sends a shock right through me I can't get enough. And if you wonder about the spell I'm under. It's your love. It's your love. It's your love."_

"Not half as much as I love you, Mr. Claybourne." Rayna stared soulfully into his eyes.

"That was pretty damn perfect, baby." Deacon kissed her softly.

"You did a damn good job, Deacon. I think that I can keep you around." She teased him.

"Oh, you only think do you?" He laughed as he started to walk with her off the dance floor.

"Now, Deacon, where do you think you're lettin' that lady go without hearin' this song that you wrote for her? You two just go on and stay right where you're at." Will instructed him.

"Deacon, what did you do?" Rayna blushed.

"You're just gonna have to hear it. Do your thing, Will." Deacon pulled her back into his arms.

" _Words can't not express the way you look in that white dress. I don't believe there's ever been such a beautiful sight. All my dreams are comin' true. That yellow rose ain't got nothin' on you. Hearts are breakin' across Texas tonight."_ Will launched into the song that Deacon had written.

"Texas?" Rayna questioned with a smile.

"It sounded better than Tennessee." Deacon laughed.

" _Tears will be fallin' everywhere as you're lettin' down your hair. From cowboys wishin' that it was them holdin' you tight. But that's the harsh reality I'd feel the same if you hadn't chose me. Hearts are breakin' across Texas tonight."_

"You're a crazy man, my love." Rayna couldn't help thinking that the words fit them perfectly.

" _The lone star is shinin' bright above and there's magic in the air. And lookin' deep into your eyes I can't help but sympathize with those who will never know the kind of love we share."_

"I was sittin' with Will when I wrote this song last night and that's where I got Texas." Deacon admitted with a laugh.

" _Tears will be fallin' everywhere as you're lettin' down your hair. From cowboys wishin' that it was them holdin' you tight. But that's the harsh reality I'd feel the same if you hadn't chose me. Hearts breakin' across Texas tonight. Yes, hearts are breakin' across Texas."_

"Deacon, that has to be the sweetest song I've ever heard." Rayna kissed him.

"Thank you, baby, I did my best." He said after he pulled away.

"Put that on your album. You have another hit on your hands with that one." She slipped back into business mode for just a minute.

He threw his head back and laughed. "You're somethin' else, girl. You can't keep your mind off work for minute."

"Just thinkin' ahead, baby." She winked at him.

"Just shut that beautiful brain of yours down for a little while and enjoy this." He pulled her into his side.

Scarlett stood up and clicked her glass with a knife. "As best man it's my job to make a speech. Here it goes." She cleared her throat. "Uncle Deacon, I love you, but you're a bonehead don't do anything to screw up with this woman again. You waited longer for her than anyone can reasonably be expected to wait for anything. I see the way you look at her and the way she looks at you and I know that I want someone to look at me like that one day." She cast a glance in Gunnar's direction and he was hanging onto every word she said. "You two are what true love looks like. Maddie, Daphne, and I are all extremely lucky that we get to be apart of that and see it every day. Rayna, you've taken me under your wing and treated me like one of your girls that means more to me than I will ever be able to say. It also means the world to me that you love my uncle so well. Together you two are like melody and lyrics. I hope you have a life filled with music and love." She raised her glass to them.

Tandy stood up now. "There are so many things I could say right now and only a small fraction of them are nice. Since my mother always told me I can't say anything nice…" she waited for the expected laughter to die down. "Stupid in love. Those are the only words that can be used to describe these two. He looks at her like he worships at her altar and she looks at him like the sun comes up in the morning because he makes it so. I knew the first time I saw them together that it would end up like this. No matter how much I didn't want to admit it or how much I wished she would find a suitable man instead of some rough and tumble guitar player. This thing between them is true and it is pure. The rest of us would be lucky to know a love like theirs." She cleared her throat. "Rayna, you've waited a long time for him so enjoy every second of it. Deacon, just because you've grown on me doesn't mean I don't still have my eye on you, buddy. One slip up and I promise you they will never find your body. You make her cry and I will make her cry. This is my baby sister and her and those girls are so previous to me. I know there's no one else in this world who will love them like you do. I can't believe I'm going to say this, but you are the man I want my nephews to be like. I love you both and I want nothing, but happiness for you." She toasted them and then wiped the tears from her eyes.

Deacon blinked to clear the tears from his eyes.

Rayna blew her sister a kiss with tears streaming down her face.

"If I didn't know any better I would say that she is starting to like me just a little bit." He whispered into her ear.

"She doesn't want to like you, but she does. What amazes me more is how well her and Beverly get along." She whispered back.

He grinned. "It's because they are both bitches and there's honor among bitches."

She swatted him playfully. "You are so bad."

"You'll just have to punish me later." He smirked sexily.

"Oh, that can be arranged." She peppered kisses along his jaw.

"Mmm, don't start something that we can't finish." He warned her.

"There's always the coat check room." She teased him.

"Woman, don't say things you don't mean." His eyes darkened with lust.

"If the girls weren't here I would in a New York minute." She nuzzled his neck with her lips.

"I don't think Maddie would notice. Look at how engaged she is with JC." He pointed to their daughter with his eyes.

"God help us, she likes guitar players just like her momma." She shook her head and leaned into him.

* * *

A/N: Here's the chapter that you've all been waiting for. I really hope you enjoyed it. For those of you who think Bev is a little out of character there's a reason for that and you'll find out what it is later. I have big things cooked up. Until next time please review.


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 15

"Here we are, Mrs. Claybourne." Deacon swung Rayna up into his arms and carried her over the threshold of the cabin.

"Deacon, put me down I'm not as light as you think I am right now. You're going to hurt your back." Rayna laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I'm doing this the right way." He carried her over to the couch and sat her down.

She pulled him down to her by the front of his shirt and kissed him. "I love you,"

"I love you too, I'm gonna go out and get the bags. I will be right back." He went outside and got their bags.

"I'm just gonna go get changed into something a little more comfortable. You stay right here and I will see you in a minute." She had a flirty smirk on her face.

"I ain't goin' nowhere, babe." He smiled back. He collected some wood and started a fire in the fireplace while he waited for his wife to get changed. Wow, wife, he grinned to himself just thinking about the fact that she was his and he was hers.

"Deacon, leave that alone and come join me in the bedroom." Her voice was soft and breathy.

He turned around and his jaw hit the floor. She stood there in the sexiest black lingerie he'd ever seen in his life. Her already generous bosom was amplified by pregnancy and threatened to spill over the top. "Wow," He said when he found his voice.

She held out her hand to him and beaconed him over with a hooked finger.

He didn't say another word. He walked over, took her hand, and allowed her to lead him to the bedroom.

"As handsome as you look tonight. I much rather see you without any clothes on." She kissed him and pushed his jacket off his shoulders. She took his tie off and threw it across the room. Slowly she undid the buttons on his shirt kissing each new patch of skin that came into view. She pushed him backwards onto the bed and got on top of him straddling his hips.

He just lay there marveling the view. Her cleavage was right in his face, but when he moved to put his hands on her she pinned them down to the bed.

"No, you just lay still and let me have my way with you for now." She kissed his lips and then down his chest to the top of his pants. She unbuckled his belt, popped the button on his pants, and unzipped them. She pushed them down his hips as far as they would go and then she used her teeth to pull his boxers down. She kissed both of his thighs.

"What are you doin' to me, woman?" He groaned loudly.

"Be patient and you will see." Finally, she took him into her mouth and licked all around the head like it was an ice cream cone.

"Oh, God!" He cried out and tangled his hand up in her hair.

She continued to bob up and down for a few moments before she pulled away with an audible pop.

"What? Why'd you stop?" He sounded confused.

She grinned at him wickedly and slipped the straps of her gown down her shoulders. She shimmied out of her panties and gripped his length in her hand. She sank down on him slowly until her hips touched his. She moaned lowly as she adjusted to his girth.

"Oh sweet Jesus, baby." He grabbed on to her hips.

She put her hands on his shoulders to steady herself and rocked her hips gently. He tried to thrust up into her, but she stopped moving. "Let me do all the work while I still can."

He wasn't going to argue because being inside her felt amazing. It was a little different this time because they were married now like it somehow made it better.

She came quickly with the force of a freight train barreling down the tracks. She lay on top of him her chest pressed against his.

He took the opportunity to flip them over. He pinned her hands above her head and bit and sucked on her neck as he pounded away at her. It didn't take long for his orgasm to wash over him.

Afterwards they both lay there panting her head resting on his chest.

"That was…" He couldn't even find the words for what that was.

"Incredible is what that was." She supplied for him.

"That was the first time I've ever made love to my wife." He grinned.

"Your wife enjoyed that very much." She smiled and ran her hand over his abs.

"So did I, baby. I think we keep getting better and better at this." He rubbed her back.

"I don't know how it's possible, but I think you're right." She agreed.

"Can you say that again? I must be losing my hearing I think you just said that I was right about something." He laughed when she swatted his chest playfully.

"I don't always have to be right. Stop acting like I do." She bit her lip to hide a grin.

"I'm not even gonna dignify that with a response." He rolled his eyes.

"Hey, don't make me have to punish you again." She had a playful gleam in her eyes.

"Is that what you called that? 'Cause if that was punishment you're doin' it wrong. I enjoyed that entirely too much." He smirked defiantly.

"That's what I called it. I know how hard it is for you not to touch me all over." She nibbled on his ear.

"You goin' for round two already?" He made his eyebrows dance.

"So what if I am?" She challenged him.

"You have no idea what kind of fire you're playin' with." He rolled over on top of her.

* * *

"Lamar, what are you doing here?" Teddy looked up from his paperwork to see his former father-in-law standing in his office.

"A man can't pay his former favorite son-in-law a visit?" Lamar innocently.

"When that man is you, no he can't. You want something from me you always want something." Teddy told him bluntly.

"I think that you got yourself into a little predicament that you can use my help with. Or does the name Natasha not mean anything to you?" Lamar smirked when he saw Teddy flinch.

"Lamar, I have no idea what you're talking about. Even if I did you're the last person that I'd want any help from." Teddy was in a pickle that was for sure, but taking help from Lamar would be risky at best.

"You don't sound so sure about that. Not all my help comes with strings attached. The last thing I want to see is my granddaughters embarrassed by a father who can't keep his zipper up when he needs to. You've all but lost Maddie as it is. You're one slip up away from losing her for good." Lamar pointed out to him.

"You wouldn't pass up the chance to have me over the barrel for this. That's not your style. You run this city and everyone knows it." Teddy disputed.

"Teddy, do you want my help or not? I'm just as content to let you hang. I could get a candidate in here that I can control. Either way it's a win-win situation for me." Lamar shrugged his shoulders.

Teddy ground the heels of his hands into his eye sockets. He really didn't see another way out of this. "Ok, Jeff Fordham introduced me to this woman and I had no idea that she was a hooker. He's holding that over my head to get me to sign Maddie to his label."

"Don't do anything yet let him think that you're going along with him. I'll take care of him soon enough." Lamar advised him.

"What is this going to cost me?" Teddy knew that Lamar wasn't doing this out of the kindness of his heart no matter what he said.

"I want my stadium, Teddy. Make it happen." Lamar told him.

* * *

"There you are, back in the land of the living. I was starting to wonder if we were going to have to send someone up to that cabin to drag you and Deacon back here." Tandy greeted her sister when she walked into the office.

"Truthfully I thought you were going to have to. That was by far the most relaxing week of my life. Deacon didn't make me lift a finger to do anything. I spent the week on the couch in one of his flannel shirts wrapped up in a blanket." Rayna replied.

"I'm surprised you had that much on. I know how you two are." Tandy smirked at her.

"When I was dressed that's what I had on anyway." Rayna laughed.

"I'm sorry that I asked now." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"Hey, this was just the practice honeymoon. We are going on the real thing once the boys get here." Rayna informed her.

"Where is that husband of yours right now anyway?" Tandy asked.

"He went to pick the dog up from Scarlett and then he is gonna come by here. Anything going on that I need to know about?" Rayna inquired.

"Him and that dog I swear. Nothing big Bucky and I took care of everything that needed to be taken care of while you were away. That JC kid showed up the other day looking for a job. Bucky put him to work as a gofer until you and Deacon got back and could decide what you wanted to do with him." Tandy gave her the rundown of what had been going on.

"He's Vince's son and Deacon has taken him under his wing. The kid can really sing. We will find something appropriate for him to do, but you did the right thing by throwing a little work his way." Rayna went into her office and booted up her computer.

"You two and your strays. I still say that it was a shame that you couldn't sign Will Lexington now that boy can sing." Tandy told her.

"Jeff was trying to assert his authority. I got him back when I stole Sadie out from under him." Rayna chuckled.

"Ms. Jaymes, I have your coffee." One of the PA's came into the room carrying a cup of coffee.

"Thank you," Rayna accepted the coffee and smiled her thanks. "Tandy, while I'm thinking about it I need to get the forms to have my name changed on my social security card and my license."

"I'll get someone on that for you. I shouldn't be that big of a problem to take care of." Tandy made a note to get someone to do that for her.

"That's it? No big lecture about me taking his last name?" Rayna asked amusedly.

"I've learned better than to say anything when it comes to him you don't listen anyway." Tandy shook her head.

"Ms. Jaymes, a package just came for your daughter care of you." Another PA walked in and handed her a package.

"That's weird, I know that I didn't order anything for Maddie and Deacon didn't either." Rayna opened the package and gasped when she pulled out a diamond necklace. "Maddie, welcome to Edgehill you'll be the diamond of our label, Jeff."

"That man is seriously out of his mind if he thinks you're gonna let that happen." Tandy threw out there.

"Exactly, I'm gonna take care of this. And you are gonna keep Deacon busy while I take care of it. I'm not trying to keep this from him. I'm trying to keep him out of jail. So, if he gets in before I get back just distract him with JC and tell him that I will be back later." Rayna grabbed her purse.

"Ray, you got a minute?" Bucky stuck his head in the door.

"I have a minute, Bucky. I have to get out of here before my husband gets here and I'm answering questions I don't want to answer right now." Rayna told him.

"It's just are we absolutely sure that Avery is the best choice to be producing Sadie's album? He's a brand new producer and he doesn't have a lot of experience." Bucky voiced his concerns.

"Buck, he's perfect. You heard what he brought out in Juliette when he produced her and what he brought out in Scarlett. He's exactly what Sadie needs. That being said it wouldn't hurt if you went to check on them. Maybe wait until Deacon gets here and take him with you. I've gotta go handle something. Tandy will fill you in, but don't tell Deacon that's something that I need to handle once I get my bearings. The last thing I need is for my husband to turn into the incredible Hulk and start smashing things. It's a thing he does and you know it." Rayna replied.

"Ok, I'm on it. I'll see if Deacon wants to tag along with me. It won't seem so much like I'm checking up that way, because he's pretty tight with both Sadie and Avery." Bucky agreed.

* * *

"Ms. Jaymes, you can't just go in there." Jeff's assistant tried to stop Rayna from busting into his office. "Mr. Fordham, I tried to stop her."

"It's alright," Jeff waved his assistant off. He was playing golf on the putting green he had in the room. "Rayna, is there anything that I can do for you? Maybe get you an antacid to settle your stomach after that baby hippo you ate for breakfast?"

"Come off it, Jeff, I'm pregnant and you know it." Rayna tried not to let her hormones get the better of her because of what he'd said. "What the hell do you think you're doing sending my daughter expensive jewelry?" She took the necklace out of her purse and threw it down on his desk.

"I'm just showing her how I treat my artists." He smirked.

"I know full well how you treat your artists. I was one of them until I got away from you thank God. Don't call her that she's not your artist. You'd need parental consent for that to happen I damn sure didn't give it and I know her father didn't either." She flared.

"That all depends on which father you're referring to. I can barely keep up with your baby daddy drama. Tennessee law only requires consent from one parent and I have it right here. This is a legally binding contract. Maddie is to be here at ten AM tomorrow for a board showcase." He flashed a contract with Teddy's signature on it.

"Not if I have anything to say about it she won't be." She stormed out of his office.

* * *

"Hey, Deacon, it's nice to see you back among the land of the living. I'm glad that you decided to stop by today and hear some of the vocal tracks that we are gonna lay down. It'll help us both get a sense of what kind of guitar tracks will feel right." Avery shook Deacon's hand.

"I had nothing better to do with my day. I can take a listen to some of the vocal tracks Sadie lays down and that way I'll know how many guitars to bring in with me when I come to do my tracks." Deacon replied.

"Avery, how's it coming?" Bucky asked.

"I just got in. I want to get set up and hear how everything sounds and then we will be ready to start recording." Avery informed him.

"Great, that's really great." Bucky said tightly.

"Listen Bucky is a bottom line guy. Tandy gave him a big lecture before we came over here about keeping costs down. You and I know that this will take as long as it takes. Just don't go wastin' time for no good reason. In other words don't be like either one of our wives and have a diva dip. It once took a whole day to record one damn song because Ray didn't like the way the drums sounded." Deacon chuckled.

"Bucky, I promise you that there is nothing for you to worry about. I'm gonna keep things on schedule and I'll do my best to keep costs down. I'm only this meticulous so things come out right the first time versus the five hundredth time. Once I get this done I'll get Sadie in here and we will start making the magic happen." Avery assured him.

"Alright, I trust you on this." Bucky relented.

"I'm gonna go check on Sadie, I'll be right back then we can get back to the office." Deacon patted Bucky on the back and took off in search of Sadie. He found her in the lounge. "Hey, Little Sister,"

"Hey, Deacon," Sadie hugged him. "It's so good to see you."

"Damn, I was only gone a week I'd hate to see what you'd act like if I were gone a little longer." He laughed.

"Fine, I didn't miss you not even one little bit. I made new friends." She teased him.

"So, how are things on the ex front?" He wanted to touch base and make sure that her ex husband hadn't given her anymore problems.

"Pete hasn't stopped by my house anymore or anything like that, but still just knowing that he's lurking around town gives me the creeps." She admitted.

"It must just be something with guys that have names that start with a P. Don't take any chances ok? You have Avery walk you to your car if it's dark when you leave here or you call me and I will be more than happy to do it that's what friends are for." He bargained with her.

"What did I tell you about worrying so much? You've gone into protective big brother mode on me and I'm sure there's no reason for it." She pushed his shoulder.

"I just know how dangerous these guys can be. There's no sense in leaving anything to chance. If you want I can hook you up with a good bodyguard and that will stop a lot of problems in their tracks. Cowards like him they can't hit a man or anyone else that can fight back. They like to pick on women and children. Or anyone who is weaker than they are. They are bullies and the best thing you can do to put a stop to them is stand up to them." He needed her to see just how serious the situation could turn.

"You're right and I know that you're right. Ok, I will start looking for a bodyguard if it makes you feel any better. Lord knows that I don't want a lecture from you every time that I see you. I miss my friend when he used to be fun and give me shit." She finally gave in.

"I can still be fun and give you hell with the best of them. I just want you to be careful. My father almost killed my momma because she wouldn't listen to reason. I don't want to see that happen to you. You've been a very good friend to Rayna and to me. And I would like it if you were still around for my boys to get to know you." He threw his hands up in a sign of surrender.

"I get it I will hire a bodyguard tomorrow tonight I will have Avery walk me out to my car and all that good stuff." She said to get him to stop lecturing.

"I only worry because I care. Anyway I didn't get a chance to thank you for singing at the weddin' yet. That meant a lot to Ray and to me. It was pretty damn special to have our friends supporting us like that. Alright, I'm gonna get out of your hair and let you be. I'm gonna have a friend of mine come by and take care of you until you can hire a real bodyguard." He told her.

"You're welcome and I appreciate it. I'm playing a gig at the Bluebird in a few days. Wanna be my TBD special guest? We can hit them with an acoustic version of Something Bad." She asked.

"Yeah, I'd like that I'll pencil you in. In the mean time I'm sending JC over here. Pete isn't likely to go up against a young buck like him." He squeezed her shoulder.

"Thank you, Deacon, now get out of here." She ordered with a pointed finger.

* * *

"Now, he did what?" Deacon demanded when he got back to the office and Rayna told him what Teddy had done.

"He signed Maddie to Edgehill because he said that's what she wants and that while I was out on the road and dealing with my Luke drama that you and he became the parents the girls could depend on. And I told him and Jeff both not if I had anything to say about would she sign at that label." Rayna was took worked up to even try to calm him down and he had the worse temper out of the pair.

"How can he even do that? He only has legal guardianship. He's not her father I am. I'll be damned if he or anyone else makes another fuckin' decision regardin' my little girl without consultin' me 'bout it. That went on for thirteen years ain't gonna happen ever again. That girl is fifteen and she has no business associatin' with a guy like Jeff Fordham he will use her up and throw her away when he's done with her. I've seen his type my whole damn career." He raged on.

"Honey, baby, we are getting ready to meet with the lawyers. We have both got to calm down. You because you can't think straight when you're pissed and me because these two little boys need their momma to be calm so they don't come early." She stressed to him once she got her wits about her.

"I'll tell you what I'd like to march my ass right over to city hall and squeeze his neck until his head pops like a pimple. All these months that we spent buildin' up good will and tryin' to be co-parents he throws down the drain so he can be seen as the cool dad. He's supposed to be so much more responsible than I am and that's why I have to share my daughter with him now." He went on a tirade before he took a deep breath and collected himself.

"You good now?" She arched her eyebrow at him.

"Yeah, I'm good now. Let's go talk to those lawyers." He took her hand and let her lead him into the boardroom.

"Ms. Jaymes, Mr. Claybourne, the fact of the matter is Tennessee law only requires one parents' signature to enter into a recording contract. Her father signed it and it is a legally binding document." The lawyer told them.

"Even if Maddie and I didn't know about it?" Rayna asked.

"What if I have a piece of paper signed by a judge statin' that I'm her father and Teddy Conrad only has legal guardianship?" Deacon questioned.

"That could take weeks to sort out in court and until then Maddie is legally under contract with Edgehill." The lawyer explained.

"What if I refuse to let her be a part of that?" Rayna rested her hands on her belly.

"Maddie would technically be in breach of contract until the matter could be sorted out in court. A judge would require proof of paternity and all of Teddy Conrad's rights would have to be severed." The lawyer answered.

"Over my dead body does my little girl go do somethin' that I had no say in. Much less for some shark like Jeff Fordham. It ain't happenin' and I don't care who I have to fight or how much money I have to pay out because of it." Deacon crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly.

"Deacon, before you go there. I have one last play to make let me try this and see how it turns out." Rayna put her hand on his arm to soothe him.

"Fine, do what you need to. But I reserve the right to kick someone's ass for this." Deacon maintained.

* * *

Teddy sat in his office staring a picture of his girls. He'd only done what he'd had to in order to protect them.

"Teddy, we need to talk." Rayna walked in without knocking.

"What more is there to be said?" He asked.

"Deacon is livid. I can't imagine why you would throw every ounce of goodwill that has been built between the two of you away over something so stupid. He's sitting out in the truck right now and it was everything I could do to stop him from coming in here and beating you to death. He let you have visitation to Maddie and keep a lot of your rights and he didn't have to. He did that for her because she loves you. But if you're going to make decisions like this maybe we need to go back to court and have all your rights terminated. If that's the only way to get her out of this mess you got her into I'm more than willing to do that. You're not her father after all Deacon is." She told him bluntly.

"That is my daughter too, Rayna you can't just take her away from me." He protested.

"No, that is Deacon's daughter and that is exactly what we did to him." She argued.

"Ok, fine, Jeff is blackmailing. I started seeing this woman that he introduced me to and I didn't know it at the time, but she was a…" He searched for the right words to describe it.

"A prostitute." She supplied helpfully.

"Yeah, he threatened to expose me if I didn't sign Maddie to Edgehill." He admitted.

She shot him a look of disgust mingled with pity and anger. "I'll take care of this. I don't need you to do anything else you'll probably only make the situation worse. I need to go. I have a homicidal husband out in the car I probably need to take to an AA meeting before he does something that he will regret." She turned on her heel and marched out of his office.

* * *

"You ok, babe?" Rayna asked Deacon as she sat on the edge of the bed putting her lotion on.

"I'm fine, I don't want a drink if that's what you're askin'. I just want this whole mess to be over with." Deacon replied.

"I know, babe, me too. I can't believe he was so stupid. At least now we know what he was doing all those nights when he stuck you with the girls." She sighed.

"Babe, I don't want to talk about him right now it'll only make me want to put my fist through a wall again. I just got that urge under control." He ran his hands over his face. Times like these it was really hard for him to behave like a rational adult.

"Sorry," She apologized.

"You are perfect, you don't have a damn thing to apologize for you weren't the one who did this and I don't want you to blame yourself or think that I blame you." He picked up his guitar and picked out a tune. He started singing softly to calm himself down.

She rested her hands on her belly and leaned in to him as he sang. She could listen to his voice all day everyday and never grow tired of it. Her eyes jerked open and a smile lit her face when she felt movement underneath her hands. She took his hand off the guitar and placed it on her stomach.

"What?" He asked a confused look on his face.

"Just sing again." She told him.

He started singing again and stop abruptly when he felt a sharp kick to his hand.

She moved his hand over a little and had him start signing again. He did and the same thing happened again.

"Wow, that's them? Those are my boys." A goofy grin lit his face.

"Those are your boys, daddy. And from the sound of it they know the sound of your voice and they like your singing. I know they always flutter around more when you talk, but that's the first time I've felt anything like that." She smiled at him with tears in her eyes.

"My boys, my little outlaw and my little rebel." He rubbed her belly.

"God, I can hope not." She laughed.

"I ain't all bad let's just hope that they got my best qualities like their sister did." He smiled when he felt another kick. "I don't ever think I've ever been as in love as I am right at this moment."

"I feel the same way, babe." She leaned over and kissed him softly.

"I mean those are my boys. I know it sounds ridiculous to you, but I feel like such a man right now." He gushed.

"It doesn't sound ridiculous to me. I just love seeing you so happy and carefree. You're at your happiest when you're in daddy mode and I love seeing you that way." She buried her face in his neck and sighed contentedly.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I threw some cute moments in there to go along with the drama. It just felt that it wasn't right that Deacon was never made aware of the whole Edgehill incident with Maddie and I had to correct it. Until next time please review.


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 16

Rayna marched into the Edgehill board meeting the next morning hell bent on getting Maddie out of that contract. "Hey, ya'll, I'm sorry I'm late. I would have been here sooner, but traffic is a nightmare."

"Ms. Jaymes, what are you doing here?" Henry Benton was confused to see her.

"Where's Maddie?" Jeff all but demanded.

"I'm just gonna sit in for my daughter she couldn't make it." She walked over to the empty seat at the table. "Jeff, I know that this is your seat, but I'm going to take it these heels are murder on my feet. And like you said I need to sit so I can properly digest the baby hippo that I ate. Come on let's get on with this meeting." She threw her feet up on the table with some effort.

"Seriously, what do you think you're doing in here?" Jeff asked her.

"Excuse me, sir, you can't go in there." An assistant's voice rang out from the hallway.

"That'll be my husband he had to find a parking spot. Don't worry he's just here as moral support." She replied as Deacon walked into the room.

"What is going on here?" Henry asked.

"Jeff, unless you want to be embarrassed in front of everyone I suggest that you clear the room." She stared him down.

Deacon stood behind her with his hand on her shoulder. He didn't trust himself to speak or to not kill Jeff.

"Give us a moment." Henry said and the room cleared out.

"Mr. Benton, my daughter knows nothing about this contract and it was signed by my ex husband without my knowledge. She is only fifteen." She told the exec.

"I'd be inclined to keep a young woman that talented under contract." Henry replied.

"Jeff blackmailed my ex husband to get him to agree to this. I know how he treats his female artists and that is not something that I want my daughter involved in. Not that long ago Layla Grant another of his female artists overdosed and was found floating facedown in his pool. She's only twenty. He got my ex to cover it up." She informed him.

"That is absurd." Jeff protested.

"If that doesn't do it for you. I have a paper here signed by a judge stating that my husband is Maddie's father and Teddy Conrad doesn't have the right to make these types of decisions for her." She took a legal document out of Deacon's hand and showed it to him.

Henry leaned back and pressed his fingertips together. "Ms. Jaymes, as far as I'm concerned this contract never existed."

"Thank you, Mr. Benton, thank you." She said gratefully.

"Come on, babe, your work here is done." Deacon held his hand out to her.

She took his hand and walked out of the boardroom.

"I'm a little busy right now. Can this wait?" Teddy asked when he looked up and saw both Rayna and Deacon in his office.

"No, it can't wait, Teddy. This needs to be done now while I'm in the right mind frame." Deacon said through gritted teeth.

"I took care of the Edgehill problem for Maddie and got her out of the contract." Rayna told him.

"Thank God," Teddy breathed a sigh of relief.

"Here's the thing I'm gonna want the girls to stay with me exclusively from now on. Get yourself some help, Teddy. I can't have my girls around you while you're a mess." She laid down the law.

"Rayna, no you can't do this to me. Don't take my girls from me." Teddy begged.

"I don't want to do it, but that is the way that things have to be until you get yourself straightened out." She crossed her arms over her chest.

"You seem to forget that one of those girls is actually mine and the only reason I let you still see her is because she loves you and I didn't want to cut you out of her life. Teddy, you and I worked so hard to be co-parents and make this work for their sake. You took advantage of the fact that I love Daphne like she's mine. While Ray was out on the road I had them both more than you did. Hell, for all I know you were with your hooker the night that the kids threw that party and no one could get in touch with you." Deacon was a lot calmer than he felt like being.

"You are the last person that can stand in judgment of anyone. You were too damn drunk to be a father you think a few months of it makes you father of the year or something. I took care of what you weren't man enough to. Consider it returning the favor."

Deacon took a step forward, but Rayna put her hand on his arm. "Babe, don't, he's not worth it let's just go."

"You're right let's go before I do something I regret." Deacon agreed with her.

* * *

"You ok? You seem restless tonight." Rayna observed that night after the girls had gone to sleep.

"Yeah, I'm fine, babe." Deacon paced the floor.

"No, this is not fine. This is you doing that thing you do where you internalize shit." She called him out.

"I just can't get comfortable tonight. I'm like that some nights." He admitted. Sometimes he felt like a stranger in his own home. All he needed to be home was Rayna and their family, but sometimes he could feel the ghosts in this place closing in on him.

"Babe, I can't help you if you don't tell me what's bothering you." She tried to get him to be honest with her.

"Ok, here it goes. Sometimes I don't feel like this is home. It just feels like a place that I live. Nothin' 'bout this place is me. Sure my stuff is here, but I don't feel like I have anything that's really mine. My house feels like home and the cabin feels like home. I just feel so out of place here with my pickup truck and my flannel and jeans. The neighbors stare at me when I go out to walk the dog in the mornin'." He leveled with her.

"I had no idea that you felt that way. What can I do to make you feel more at home?" She asked concerned.

"I don't know, babe. This place it just doesn't feel like ours. The cabin is ours I've never taken anyone else there. But you've had two other men here and I just can't get comfortable. I've tried to tough it out and not say anything about it because I don't want to uproot the girls anymore than they already have been, but I'm uncomfortable. I'm sleepin' in a bed that you slept in with two other men. It's kinda hard not to feel like an outsider sometimes." He felt better to have that off his chest.

"Babe, marriage is about compromise and you shouldn't be the one making all the sacrifices. Will it be hard to leave here? Sure it will be. But this house it isn't what makes us a family it's the fact that we are together. Maybe it's time that we start a new adventure together." She could understand why he felt that way. In his shoes she wouldn't be as understanding as he had been.

"I wouldn't feel right causing more upheaval for the girls. I can live with it until they are in college. That's not that long to wait. It's just hard sometimes is all, babe." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Honey, if you don't talk to me about these things then I don't know that there is a problem that needs to be addressed. It's not something that has to be decided right now. It's something that we can put a pin in until later, but I'm glad you told me. I like it when you talk to me about how you're feeling." She got up and put her arms around him.

"I had another thought if you wanna hear it." He rested his chin on the top of her head.

"That's a scary thought, but of course I want to hear it." She buried her face in his chest.

"I was thinkin' that we could avoid a situation like the one that just happened ever again if you signed both the girls to Highway Sixty-five." He suggested.

"Deacon, you know how I feel about that." She looked up at him.

"I do know how you feel about it and I feel the same way. But you've seen Maddie she is chompin' at the bit to get out there. Just hear me out now. If she's signed to your label she's not gonna run off the minute she turns eighteen and sign with the first label that will take her. This way you can control her exposure to the media and how much she does. And Daphne isn't getting left behind. I'm not sayin' that you give them a contract and push them in the deep end of the pool. I'm sayin' that you ease them into it gradually. What label head is gonna have their best interests at heart more than their own momma?" He reasoned with her.

"As much as I hate to say it that's not a half bad idea, husband. That's not a bad idea at all. It gives her something that she wants and I would be right there to keep an eye on her. We both know it's only a matter of time before that girl of ours does something completely rebellious just to show us she can. As much as she's like you she reminds me so much of me at that age. There wasn't anything I wouldn't do or say to piss my daddy off." She could admit that it was a good idea.

"See, wife, I'm not so bad at this parenting thing after all." He grinned.

"You're not bad at this parenting thing at all. I don't want to tell them right now, but after the boys get here it is something that we can sit down and discuss this with them as a family." She smiled up at him.

* * *

"What are we celebrating this early and why do you have a bottle of champagne? You're not even supposed to be drinking." Tandy asked the next morning.

Rayna had gathered Bucky and Tandy in her office. "Don't worry I'm not gonna drink it. We may be celebrating the fact that I got Jeff Fordham fired, but only a little bit." She started opening the champagne.

"What else could be celebrating?" Tandy was beyond trying to figure her sister out by now.

"My new head of A and R. Bucky, you have been with me since the beginning and no one knows what I want for this label better than you do." She poured a glass of champagne for him and Tandy.

"Ray, are you sure about this?" Bucky asked with a smile.

"Yes, I'm sure about this. I can't think of anyone else that would be better suited for the job than you are. No one else could work with the new talent scout as well as you'll be able to." Rayna assured him.

"New talent scout? Who else did you hire without telling me?" Tandy winced. This was exactly why she handled the business end of things.

"I hired Deacon relax. There's just something about him he's like everyone's kindly uncle. These young artists really open up around him. Look at how Will, Avery, Scarlett, and Gunnar are around him. He's got a good ear and him and Bucky will make a very good team." Rayna put her at ease.

"Deacon does have a great ear. And on the plus side I know that the two of us aren't going to come to blows over a difference of opinion." Bucky agreed.

"I hope he knows his salary is coming from his album sales." Tandy grumbled.

"It gives him something to do other than hover over me all day. It's really to distract him when he isn't working on his album. Thankfully today he is in the studio working on Sadie's album and he will hopefully be there for awhile. Every time I so much a hiccup he's there trying to make sure that I'm ok." Rayna sighed.

"You have to remember that even though this is your third time doing this it's his first he's gonna be a little crazy." Tandy couldn't believe that she was defending Deacon of all people.

Lamar knocked on the door and walked in. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything, but they told me you were in here."

"What do you need, daddy?" Rayna asked him.

"I have a late wedding present for you." Lamar handed her a list. "You pick any of the names you want off that list and they are yours."

"Luke Wheeler, Will Lexington, Layla Grant, The Alabama Boys." Rayna read a few names off the list.

"Daddy, what are you up to? Those are all Edgehill artists." Tandy questioned her father suspiciously.

"Henry Benton and I had a talk. After that stunt that Jeff Fordham pulled with Maddie he's folding up shop. I talked him into waiting a few hours to announce it until Rayna had a chance to see if there were any contracts she wanted to buy out. It's all perfectly above board." Lamar assured her.

"I don't know, Buck, what do you think? You're my new head of A and R. Who do we want off this list?" Rayna passed the list to Bucky.

"Will Lexington for sure and there are a couple of others I can see right off the bat that we should take. As much as I hate to suggest it Luke would be good for business." Bucky said off the top of his head.

"Good for business, but not so good for my marriage. And I'm not so sure that he would be a good fit around here. I already have Juliette to contend with. I don't need another diva to cater to." Rayna wasn't sold on the idea of having Luke on her label.

"Daddy, how long do we have to decide?" Tandy asked.

"I have him held off until noon that gives you two hours to pick. If you want my advice skip on Luke Wheeler that man is more trouble than he's worth. The price tag that comes with him is too big to contend with." Lamar offered his thoughts on the matter.

"I would have thought you would have been all for Luke." Rayna looked at him like he was crazy.

"And if you were any other label head I would have urged you to sign him. You were right he doesn't fit around here." Lamar surprised her by agreeing with her.

"It looks like the first item on our agenda after picking a few artists is to go after Edgehill's back catalog of songs." Bucky threw out there.

"I'll take care of that. You and Rayna sort through those artists. If you don't pick them up outright today they will still be looking for a label and you can get them that way." Tandy was in business mode.

"Tandy, get my back catalog I want those songs. And just for the hell of it get Ball and Chain so I never have to hear that damn song ever again. And get Will's catalog and Juliette's too." Rayna ordered.

"Babe, I know, I've got this just relax." Tandy assured her.

* * *

"So, I was thinking that I'd do one run through with the slide guitar on Novocain just to see what it sounds like. You know just come in clean with it and go from there." Deacon suggested to Avery.

"I don't know about the slide guitar, Deacon, I don't want it to sound too bluesy." Avery made a face.

"That's my concern too. That's why I'm gonna give it a trial run before I commit to it. I brought four different guitars with me today. We have different sounds we can play around with. I just wanna do the slide guitar first and get it out of the way. You're the boss here, I'm just tryin' to help move things along as quick as humanly possible so Buck isn't breathin' down our necks." Deacon clapped him on the back.

"And I'm eternally grateful to you for greasing the lanes for us. I have a crazy pregnant woman at home to deal with and I know you know what that's like." Avery rolled his eyes.

"The difference is I'm not married to Juliette Barnes I at least know that there is an end to the craziness in sight." Deacon chuckled. "I'm gonna go on and get started."

"Alright, sounds good to me." Avery said and turned to the guy working the mixing board. "Bring up the drum tracks for me." The sound of drums began to play in the room.

"That's pretty good who'd you get to do that Watkins?" Deacon inquired.

"

"No, JC laid those down of us last night while he was playing babysitter for Sadie. He's a pretty great drummer." Avery corrected him.

"His daddy was Ray's drummer. How did things go for Sadie last night?" Deacon took his guitar out of the case.

"Pete showed up here last night and she pretty much told him off. It was kind of epic. It was almost as good as your wife telling Luke to get screwed on national TV without using those words." Avery replied.

"Good for her, let's get down to business or my wife is going to tell both of us to go get screwed in person. She is in the mind frame to do it right now." Deacon headed into the recording booth.

"Alright, Deacon, that's enough come on back in here and we will listen to it." Avery said after Deacon had been playing for awhile.

Deacon walked back in. "I could hear it there, it's not gonna work. It's almost too tinny for the song."

Avery went to reply, but his phone rang. "Play it through and see how it sounds. I have to take this it's my wife." He walked out of the room and returned a minute later. "What do you think?"

"I think it could work, but like I said you're the boss and something else may sound much better." Deacon shrugged and played it for him again.

"No slide guitar. Did you bring your Gibson or your Martin?" Avery shook his head.

"I brought both. I can do a quick run through with both of them. Truthfully I don't think it'll make much of a difference which one I use they sound pretty similar." Deacon ran his hand over his stubble.

"In that case just pick one and if I don't like the way it sounds I'll have you go with the other." Avery told him.

"Ya'll might wanna hold off on that. I just got a cease and desist letter from Pete's lawyer. You two can pack it in for the day I have to figure out a way to tell Rayna about this. It was bad enough when he was just stalking me." Sadie walked into the room with JC on her heels.

"Hey, Little Sister, none of that. This isn't your fault. You just go explain it to her she will understand completely." Deacon knew that Rayna wouldn't hold this against her.

"It's just embarrassing, Deacon." Sadie's eyes filled up with tears.

"I know that better than anyone I know that. It's gonna be ok though. If you want I can drive you back to the office." Deacon offered.

She gave him a half smile. "No, this is something that I need to do on my own, but thanks for the offer, Big Brother."

"JC, go with Sadie back to the office and see that she gets there alright then come back here. I may have some work for you to do." Deacon told the young man.

"Sure thing, Uncle Deacon." JC nodded his head in understanding. "Sadie, you ready to go?"

"I'm ready, JC. I promise you that I will get an actual bodyguard at some point, so you don't have to follow me around everywhere." Sadie promised him.

"It's no big deal. I can handle it. I don't brag about this, but I'm special forces. Let's get you to the office." JC assured her.

"You are telling me this story on the way. It has to be a good one." Sadie told him as she walked out with him.

"Well, it doesn't look like we are doing anymore work on this album today." Avery scoffed.

"Not on this one. I got another album we can work on if you're up to it." Deacon replied.

"Deacon, I'm flattered, but I don't think I have time to produce your album." Avery gave a nervous chuckle.

"I'm not askin' you to produce my album, Avery. I'm askin' you to just be an extra set of ears for me. I'm basically producin' my own album unless Ray puts a stop to it. Anyway, I wanna get a couple songs down. We have the studio anyway it would be a shame to let it go to waste." Deacon reasoned.

"Sure, I'm game if you are." Avery agreed.

* * *

"Rayna, I hate like hell that we are doing this and that you are having to pay out money over this. I'm so sorry." Sadie and Rayna sat in the lawyer's office waiting for Pete and his lawyer to show up.

"Sadie, don't do that. Don't apologize and don't blame yourself. That is what we have insurance for. Highway Sixty-five is having a very good day today and we can afford this. It's worth it just to get him out of your life." Rayna placed a comforting hand on top of hers.

"I'm pissed off at him. After everything he's done he shouldn't get to win." Sadie took a shaky breath.

"There you go, girl. You get mad and focus your rage on him, but don't you ever think that this was your fault. Don't be sorry for having courage enough to get away. I don't know if Deacon told you this and normally I wouldn't, but I think you need to hear it. His father beat his mother so badly that she almost died. Because she didn't have the courage to walk away from that man. You saved your own life, Sadie, and I don't ever want you to apologize for that." Rayna told her firmly.

"Deacon told me and I hope you're not mad that I asked him not to tell you." Sadie cracked her neck to relieve some tension.

"Of course he did, he's your big brother and that's what he's there for. I'm not mad he needs to talk about it and not keep it bottled up and you needed to hear it." Rayna made a joke to lighten the situation. Most women would be threatened by the fact that their husbands were close friends with another woman, but she knew he only had eyes for her.

Sadie stiffened up as Pete, his lawyer, and Highway Sixty-five's lawyer walked into the room.

"I think a fair settlement has been reached by both parties. Mr. Collins gets half a million dollars and half the revenue from the sales of this album with no claim to any further works by Ms. Stone." Rayna's lawyer pushed a document across the table to Pete's lawyer.

Pete took the document, read it over, and smirked. "What does someone say when they finally get exactly what they deserve? Somehow thank you just doesn't seem like it's enough." He signed the document.

"That concluded our business here then." Rayna's lawyer stood up.

Sadie got up and walked out of the room. As did the two lawyer's.

"Hey, Pete," Rayna called out and the man turned to look at her. "I don't know what your problem is. Maybe the good Lord only gave you two inches, but if you come anywhere near my friend again I will make it my mission to ruin you. And unlike you I actually have the power to do it." She exited the room without giving him a chance to reply.

* * *

Deacon walked into the Highway 65 office amid a din of activity. There were PAs rushing around and he could see that Tandy was holed up in her office with the blinds closed. The first person he saw that wasn't in a rush was Bucky. "Hey, Buck, what's going on?"

"Nashville is basically burning to the ground and your father-in-law is fiddling in the ashes. You know the usual around here." Bucky answered him.

"What are you talking about?" Deacon had no clue what was going on he had been in the studio all day.

"Do you not check…" Bucky started to say and then he remembered who he was talking to. "Edgehill is folding up shop and Lamar somehow got them to give us first crack at buying out their artists' contracts and their catalog before the news broke. That's not the kicker though he's paying for it all."

"Holy shit, hell must have frozen over." Deacon's eyes got wide.

"Yeah, I know. Either that or Lamar has turned over a new leaf. I can't decide which." Bucky more or less agreed.

"I'd bank on hell freezin' over." Deacon gave a low chuckle.

"There are a few Edgehill artists that we passed on, but they are still up in the wind. I want to hear what you think since you're the new talent scout. You know your wife better than anyone and there are a few I think we should have gone with. I want you to give them a listen." Bucky told him.

"Sure I can do that. And it'll make you breathe easier to know that I got a couple more tacks laid down for my album. I took the studio time that Sadie wasn't using to keep us from wasting money." Deacon replied.

"Deacon, you're amazing when you want to be." Bucky beamed at him.

"Isn't he?" Rayna had just walked back into the office.

"Hey, babe, I heard that Lamar did his good dead for the decade." Deacon wrapped his arm around her waist.

"He did and it shocked no one more than it shocked me. We got a couple really great new artists to help develop the label. I even got your buddy Will. We passed on Luke he just doesn't fit our brand." Rayna leaned into him.

"I don't know if that was a business choice or a personal choice, but I thank you for that, babe. I don't know how I could be around that guy and not want to punch his lights out." Deacon planted a kiss on her cheek.

"It's been a long hectic day, baby, what do you say you take me out and feed these boys?" She smiled.

"I think that is the best damn idea I've heard all day." He agreed.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Next chapter coming up is a pretty big chapter. Until next time please review.


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 17

"Bev, you better have one damn good reason for wanting to see me here." Deacon called out as he walked into the East Nashville home that he used to inhabit. He hadn't seen his sister in the four weeks since he'd gotten married and now she had called and told him that she was back in town. He could only guess at to what she wanted and none of those things were good.

"Now, baby brother, is that anyway for you to greet me?" Beverly got up and gave him a big hug.

"That's the way I greet you when I get summoned over here in the middle of a writing session with one of the new artists." He grumbled, but he hugged her back.

"It's important or I wouldn't have called you away in the middle of a work day." She promised him.

"Uncle Deacon, can I get you anything? I have sweet tea and coffee." Scarlett offered him.

"I can get it myself, sweetie. Do ya'll want anything?" He went into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of sweet tea while the other two declined his offer. "So what do you want, Bev?" He kept his spot at the counter. He got the feeling that he wasn't going to like where this conversation went.

"Deacon, I'll be upfront with you I need a place to stay for a little while." Beverly told him.

"Bev, you can stay here as long as you need and you know that. You didn't even have to ask me that." If that was all she wanted he could deal with that.

"I need a place to stay because daddy got out of prison." Beverly admitted.

And there it was the other shoe that Deacon had been waiting for to drop. "How the fuck did he get out of prison?"

"He got out on a medical release. He was too sick for the state to continue to take care of him. He needs a place to stay and he needs medical care." Beverly explained to him.

"Good, I hope the son of a bitch dies a slow miserable death after everything he put us through. That bastard sure as shit ain't stayin' here. I know that you're not askin' that of me. How's momma takin' this? Does she even know he's out?" His nostrils flared with rage.

"She's fine she hasn't seen him, but she knows he's out. He has cirrhosis of the liver, Deacon. Without a transplant he will die. Not today or tomorrow, but he has a couple years at best." Beverly informed him.

"So why are you tellin' me this, Bev? It's not like I give a good damn. Son of a bitch could die tomorrow for all I care and the world would be a better place without him in it." He took a sip of his tea to give himself a second to calm down.

"I'm tellin' you because I was tested to see if I'm a match and I'm not. You're his son, you have a damn good chance of being a match. I came to ask you to do this for him." Beverly stared him down.

"Fuck no, that's my answer. Not only no, but fuck no, Beverly. If he was on fire I wouldn't piss on him to put him out. He put us through hell it's a miracle that either one of us survived to adulthood with that man. He beat us and was cruel to us and he damn near killed our momma. I don't know why you would want to do a damn thing for him or why you think that it's ok to ask me to when you know good and well how I feel." He banged his fist on the counter.

"He's still our daddy the only damn one that we've got. He knows that what he did was wrong and he's sorry for it. I'm askin' you because you owe us damn it! You ran off to Nashville and you never once looked back. You fell in with that Belle Meade princess and you forgot that you had a family. You owe me, Deacon!" Beverly yelled at him.

"Oh, I owe you! I owe you? Who took care of Scarlett when you couldn't after Doug left? I believe that was me and that Belle Meade princess as you call her. We had her for three months, Beverly. Who paid for her college so she could be somethin' more than us? I think that was me." He undid the buttons on his shirt and pointed to the scar on his right shoulder. "What's that, Bev? Huh? What's that? That's a scar from his belt buckle. That was the first beatin' I took from him that was meant for you." He stepped closer to his sister as he spoke.

"Get over yourself, Deacon. You're not the only one who lived through it. That could just as easily be you in that boat. You did a pretty damn good job of tryin' to wreck your liver too as I recall. That ain't the only thing you got from him either you're pretty damn good at abandoning your family just like he always was." Beverly used the words that she knew would cut the deepest.

"I got help though and I never once laid a hand on anyone that I loved. I had a woman who was strong enough to cut me loose before I became someone that neither one of us could stand. I know that I'm like him I don't need you to tell me that. No I'm not the only one in that house that he beat on, but I became the one that took it all. As soon as I got big enough to stand up to him I did and he didn't touch you and momma as long as I was around. You became the golden child who could do no wrong. Anytime he wanted to hit anyone it was me he hit, but once I got the better of him he took off and stayed gone for as long as he could at a time because there was no one left for him to bully. I may be like him, but I'd never put my hands on my wife or my girls." His body shook with rage. He couldn't believe what his sister was saying to him.

"What? You've got a new family now so you can turn your back on us for good? Don't think that anyone thinks that you're good enough for your sainted Rayna. Because they don't. They will never see you as anything other than the white trash boy from Mississippi that they just have to put up with." Beverly spit out hatefully.

"Momma, Uncle Deacon, that is enough." Scarlett stepped in between the warring siblings. She knew that would be enough to stop Deacon anyway.

Deacon went into a drawer and pulled out his checkbook. He wrote a check and tore it out. "Bev, stay here as long as you want to I don't care you're welcome to a room. I don't want that man in my house or anywhere near my family and that includes you. My family is Ray, the girls, momma, and you. If you can't see that it's not my problem. Get him help is that's what you want, but I'm not havin' any part of it. That's a little money to help you out." He handed her the check. He held out his key with a trembling hand. "Scarlett, sweetie, we have a work meetin' we need to get to. I need you to drive. I'm pretty sure I'm dry drunk right now and I want to smash everythin' in this house. Let's just go see what Ray wants with us."

Scarlett took his keys from him. "Come on, Uncle Deacon, let's go." She wrapped her arm around his shoulders and led him outside.

"Not a word of this to my wife. She doesn't need the added stress right now. Her doctor already said that the boys could come any day because they are twins and multiples are always early." He told her.

"I won't say anything that you don't want me to say that's between you and Rayna. I'm so sorry that momma ambushed you like that." She apologized to him.

"It's not your fault, sweetie, don't worry about it." He climbed into the passenger seat with a sigh.

* * *

Rayna shifted around in her chair trying to get comfortable. These days it seemed no matter what she did she was never completely comfortable. One of the boys constantly had his feet in her ribs and the other enjoyed playing kickball with her kidneys. "Ow," She groaned lowly and rubbed her back.

"You doing alright, Ray?" Bucky asked concerned.

"Other than the fact that I have a seat of feet in my ribs and a set of feet in my back I'm fine." Rayna waved off his concern. "When was the last time that anyone heard from Deacon or Scarlett? They should have been here fifteen minutes ago."

"Deacon got a call when we were playing around in the writer's room and he said he would be back in time for this meeting." Will informed her.

"I just heard from Scarlett a few minutes ago she said that they were on the way here. That's all I know." Gunnar chimed in.

"Hey, ya'll sorry that we're late we had a stop to make on the way here." Scarlett came into the boardroom with a subdued looking Deacon on her heels.

One look at Deacon with his hands shoved in his pockets and Rayna knew that he was playing with his AA chip. That told her he had just come from a meeting. "It's no problem at all. We haven't been waiting that long."

Deacon took a seat next to his wife and slipped his hand into hers. He felt all the tension in his body instantly melt away with the physical contact.

"Alright, boss lady, what's on the agenda for this meeting?" Juliette asked impatiently.

"Will, we will start with you. Did you get a chance to look at the songs that we sent to you?" Rayna asked.

"Yeah I looked at them." Will answered.

"If you were hoping for more personalized material we agree that those songs weren't exactly you. We are gonna hook you up with Kevin Bicks he's a great song writer and I think that you will learn a lot working with him. If you play your cards right you could end up with a whole album full of co-writes." Bucky came in.

"Sounds good to me." Will smiled uneasily. He knew that Kevin was openly gay and he wasn't sure that that was something he wanted for his image. It also made him worry that people suspected the truth about him.

"Scarlett, Gunnar, Avery, we've got ya'll hooked up playing some local venues to get you some exposure. Bucky has some really great contacts and he's going to keep his ear to the ground for more stuff for you." Rayna moved on to the next order of business. She just wanted to touch base with her artists.

"That sounds like something that we can handle to me. I know that Scarlett and Gunnar have been working on some new stuff while I've been busy with Sadie's album." Avery nodded his head.

"That brings us to Sadie. How is your album coming?" Rayna asked.

"Avery and I are getting there. We've really picked up momentum in the last few weeks." Sadie reported.

"Juliette, anything that you want to add?" Rayna knew that they were pretty much in the same boat.

"You were complaining about feet in your back and ribs talk to me when you have a baby elephant on your diaphragm. I can't sing like that, so I have no progress to report as of yet." Juliette sighed.

"One of them gets pissed off when the other one invades his space so I don't have to worry about that with them, but I had the same problem with Daphne. She laid there for a month and wouldn't move no matter what I did." Rayna chuckled lightly. Being pregnant wasn't fun at all at times. "Layla, sweetie, we are working on getting you gigs. You also need to think about getting a manager. If you need any help just ask Bucky."

"I can do that." Layla agreed. She was just happy to be on a label that was willing to help advance her career.

"Deacon?" Rayna looked at her husband with an arched eyebrow.

"I'm makin' progress, but that progress slows considerably when someone I know calls me every five minutes." Deacon winked at her.

"Deacon, our drummer just broke his arm. What do you think of us using JC as a standin until he heals up?" Avery asked.

"That kid is the second comin' of his daddy on the drums. I say absolutely use him as long as you need to. I'll let you be the one to tell him. I know that he will be excited for the steady work." Deacon gave him a half hearted smile.

"Alright, Ya'll get out of here and go about your days. I just wanted to touch base and let you know that I'm here for you for whatever you need. Or rather Bucky is. I'm getting ready to go home and plant my very pregnant self on the couch and not move until these boys decide it's time to come." Rayna joked lightly.

Everyone got up and filed out of the room.

"Deacon, are you gonna tell me what's with you? I know that you were just at a meeting. What's going on, babe?" She took both of his hands in hers.

"Just feelin' stressed that's all." He really didn't want to put more stress on her if he could avoid it. This was his problem to deal with anyway.

"Deacon John," She stared him down.

"I got a call from Bev. She's at my old place. I went over there to talk to her and she proceeds to tell me that Paul got out of prison. She further went on to pretty much try to bully me into givin' him part of my liver. You know how well that went over." He finally just told her everything.

She cupped his cheek gently. "Babe, I'm so sorry. I know how you feel about him. Do I have to tell you again that you're not him? Because I will. I will tell you as many times as you need to hear it to believe it."

"I'm a lot like him and I can't deny that. I have his disease and I'm the spittin' image of that man." He shook his head sadly.

"The difference is that you got help and you stuck to it. I'm so proud of you, Deacon. You've come such a long way. The man you used to be would have torn up everything in his path, but given the fact that your knuckles aren't all busted up tells me that you didn't. You did the adult thing and you went to a meeting. That alone makes you a better man than he ever will be." She kissed him softly.

"God, I don't know what I did right enough to deserve you, but I really should thank someone." He gave her a lopsided grin.

* * *

Deacon took his Martin Dreadnought off the wall where it hung in the music room. It was the first guitar that he'd ever played a note on. It was also one of the only guitars he'd never even thought about smashing in a fit of rage. He just stared at it and thought about how much history there was in that guitar.

"Deacon, what are you doing?" Daphne came in and disrupted his solitude.

"I was just lookin' at my guitar that's all. I do stuff like that sometimes." He flashed her a smile. The last thing he wanted to do was alarm her. She was his sunshine girl always bright and cheery no matter what the circumstances.

"That looks like an old one." She observed as she took a seat on the couch.

He sat down beside her. "It is pretty old. This was my first guitar. You wanna hear 'bout where I got it?"

"Sure," She snuggled into his side.

"Maddie, I hear you lurking out there come on in I want you to hear this too." He called out.

Maddie came in and sat on the other side of her father. "So, what are we doing?"

"Deacon, is about to tell us where he got his first guitar." Daphne supplied.

"I got this guitar from my pawpaw. He was a good man and he would have just adored you girls. He was my father's father. His name was Deacon too except he was Deacon Paul and I'm Deacon John. He was a traveling musician. Anyway I was a little bitty guy and he would sit me on his lap and let me strum the strings on his guitar. He's the one the taught me how to play. When I was like seven or eight he gave me this guitar and it's one of favorites." He told him his story. His childhood hadn't been without it's bright spots and his grandfather was one of them. He was the one who'd given him the little bit of money he'd come to Nashville with.

"Aren't you two supposed to be in bed?" Rayna smiled from the doorway. She loved seeing Deacon interact with the girls. He was so good with them and they both adored him.

"Getting ready to go now, mom." Daphne chirped happily.

"I was on my way, but dad wanted to tell us a story." Maddie defended. She was so defensive about everything.

"You two tell Deacon goodnight and get on up to bed." Rayna ordered.

"Night, Deacon," Daphne kissed his cheek.

"Night, dad," Maddie hugged him.

"Night, girls." He smiled. No matter how bad his day had been they always managed to put a smile on his face.

"You doing any better?" Rayna curled up next to him.

"I am now. Those two are always good for putting me in a better mood. It also helps to remember the good stuff from my past. It's hard to believe, but there is some of that in there too." He put his arm around her.

"Good, I'm glad to hear it. You were pretty upset when you walked into that room today and I was worried about you." She laid her head on his shoulder.

He twirled his plain silver wedding band around his finger. "You know I've been thinkin' and I wanna release Route Three as my next single." He'd gone back and forth about it since he'd written it and after the conversation he'd had with Beverly earlier his mind was made up.

"What brought that on?" She was surprised he was normally very tight lipped about his past. She couldn't believe that he'd opened up as much as he had with the girls.

"It was a lot of different stuff. I just think it's time that I tell my truth to the world and let the chips fall where they may." He shrugged his shoulders.

"I think you're very brave and I will stand behind you no matter what you decide." She kissed along his jawline.

"Mmm, don't you start somethin' down here. I wouldn't be surprised if one of those girls is still lurkin' 'round." He laughed.

"Then, I suggest you take me up to the bedroom." She purred in his ear.

* * *

Two weeks later

"Deacon," Rayna nudged him gently. She only got a loud snore in response out of him. Go figure normally he sleep so light she had to tread carefully. The one time she needed him to wake up he as in a deep sleep. "Deacon," She tried again more urgently. "Deacon John!" She shoved him roughly.

Deacon sat straight up in the bed. He looked over at the alarm clock and saw that it read 11:00 PM. "Ray, if you woke me up to go get you ice cream the answer is no I'm goin' back to sleep." He yawned.

"I didn't wake you up just to get me ice cream. I think you need to take me to the hospital. I've been having contractions on and off every fifteen minutes for the last couple of hours." She explained to him.

"Go back to sleep, baby, those are probably just those Braxton Hicks things like the last time." He rubbed his eyes.

"No, Deacon, I'm telling you this time feels different. It feels like the real thing." The sense of urgency in her voice must have told him that she wasn't playing around.

"Alright, I'm gonna get dressed and grab the bag. Just put your house shoes on." He jumped up and threw his clothes on.

She got her feet into her house shoes with a little bit of effort. "Babe, the girls."

"I'll wake 'em." He slung the overnight bag over his shoulder. "Can you make it downstairs on your own?"

"I'm fine, babe, just get the girls." She assured him. She stared to slowly make her way to the stairs.

He went down the hall to wake the girls and reappeared a moment later with Daphne in his arms and a groggy Maddie following behind him. He got the girls in the truck before he helped Rayna up. He punched the button on his steering wheel that would allow him to call Scarlett.

"Uncle Deacon, it's late, what's going on?" Scarlett's voice came through the truck.

"Scarlett, we are on our way to the hospital now. I'm pretty sure that it's not a false alarm this time." Deacon's excitement came out in his voice.

"Oh, shit! It's not a false alarm. My water just broke." Rayna cussed.

"I'm leaving right now I'll meet you up there, I love ya'll." Scarlett tried hard to keep the laughter out of her voice.

"Love you too, sweetheart." He hung up and dialed Tandy's number.

"Jesus Christ, Deacon. You call at the most inopportune times. I'm not even going to ask what you want. I'll just tell you that it better be good." Tandy bitched at him. "Bucky, stop." She hissed.

"Your sister is in labor thought you'd wanna know. I'm hangin' up now, there are things I can't unhear." He fought the urge to gag.

"We will meet you up there." Tandy hung up the phone without another word.

"Mom, why is Aunt Tandy with Uncle Bucky?" Maddie questioned.

"Sweet girl, momma really loves you, but she can't concentrate on that right now. Ask Aunt Tandy." Rayna had a death grip on Deacon's forearm.

Fifteen minutes later Deacon pulled into the parking lot of the hospital. "Come on, Squirt, you gotta walk with your sister. I gotta help your momma." He put Daphne's hand in Maddie's. He helped Rayna into the hospital and they got her into a wheelchair and into a private room on the maternity floor.

"Alright, Rayna, we are moving in the right direction. It won't be long now and you will be the proud mother of two baby boys." Dr. Monroe reported after doing an examination.

"How much longer before she can have one of them epidural things? These contractions are even hurtin' me." Deacon shook out his hand. Rayna had squeezed it so hard that he was sure she had broken something. He played guitar for a living he couldn't have that.

"She's at a four, daddy, I want her at least at a six before I even think about it." Dr. Monroe patted him on the back with a laugh. "Hang in there."

"So, you think she's gonna be able to have them naturally and you're not gonna have to do a C-section?" He had done a lot of reading about pregnancy stuff.

"It looks like she's gonna be able to do this just fine on her own." Dr. Monroe answered. "I'll be back to check on her a little while later. If this goes as quickly as it did with Daphne it shouldn't take long."

"I don't even want to know I just know that this is enough to make me never want to have kids ever." Maddie said disgustedly.

"Oh, baby girl, don't ever lose that attitude. I barely handle bein' a daddy I don't think I can handle bein' a grandpa." Deacon kissed her forehead.

"Uncle Deacon, you are aware that's gonna happen sooner or later right?" Scarlett asked from the doorway.

"Scarlett, now is so not the time to play with me like that." He glared.

"I called grandma for you she will be here as soon as she can. She's using the plane ticket you gave her for this. Momma will be here later I don't truthfully know where she is and I didn't wanna ask." Scarlett gave him the run down.

"Thanks for doing this, honey. We appreciate it." Rayna smiled at her gratefully. She was fine as long as she wasn't having a contraction.

"I don't mind taking them at all." Scarlett assured her. "Come on, girls, Gunnar is waitin' for us." She put an arm around each other them.

"Gunnar?" Deacon questioned amusedly.

"Late night writing session. Unlike you some people can just write together." Scarlett gave him a look.

"Bye, mom, good luck." Maddie called to her mother.

"Good luck, mom, I love you." Daphne waved.

"Bye girls, I'll see you both soon." Rayna blew them both a kiss.

"The mouth of the south must not be here yet. If she were we would be able to hear her bitchin' at Bucky from here." Deacon chuckled.

"Deacon, be nice." Rayna scolded him.

"I'm gonna ask you one last time. Are you sure that you don't want her in the room when they're born? I know she was there with both of the girls." He took her hand.

"No, baby, I only want you. She will understand." She kissed his knuckles.

"My lord, can you two not go a second without touching? That's how you got in this position to begin with." Tandy announced her presence.

"We knew, that you were comin' and we did that just for you." Deacon smirked.

"Where's Buck?" Rayna asked.

"He said he was there when you found out and that was enough for him he will be in here after they are born. He also said something along the lines of he knows more than enough about you two without stepping foot in this room." Tandy answered.

"Men are babies there is a reason they don't go through childbirth." Rayna chuckled. "Hand, Deacon, hand." She gritted her teeth.

Deacon gave her his hand and squeezed his eyes shut.

Four hours later the first of the twins made his entrance into the world with a loud ringing cry. Deacon stood there stupefied for a minute when the nurse asked him if he wanted to cut the cord. He accepted the scissors and cut his son's cord. Tandy had ended up staying in the room to take pictures for them and because Deacon had been afraid that he might pass out. Five minutes later He repeated the process with his second son.

They laid both boys on Rayna's belly while they stitched her up and then they took them to be cleaned up a little bit. The nurse carried them back over wrapped in blankets with blue hats on their heads. She put each of them in one of Deacon's arms. He looked down and both his sons and fell deeper in love than he ever had been in his entire life.

"Look what we did, momma." His voice quivered with emotion as he showed the boys off to Rayna. It took some doings, but he was able to place one of them in her arms.

"Oh my God, Deacon, they look just like you." Rayna's hair was plastered to her forehead by a layer of sweat. She kissed her son's tiny head. "Hi, baby boy, I'm your momma."

"Ray, they are incredible." He kissed the baby's fingers. "Look at that he's got guitar player's fingers."

"Just like his daddy." She smiled at him through tears of joy.

Tandy put her hand on his shoulder. "Good job, daddy, they are gorgeous." She surprised them both by kissing his cheek. She kissed her sister's forehead. "I'm gonna go call daddy and Scarlett and let them know it's safe to come up here now." She took her leave.

"So, what are we gonna name these guys?" Deacon asked.

"I have a name in mind that I really like." Rayna told him.

"Well so do I." He replied.

"On the count of three. Three, two, one." She counted down. "Deacon,"

"Jaymes," They both gave their names at the same time and then they smiled at each other.

"I love you so much, baby." He bent down and kissed her and the baby she held.

"I love you too, babe." She smiled against his lips. "Oh, yeah, that sweet baby boy you've got in your arms is definitely Deacon just like his daddy. He's already got the broody look on his face just like you."

"I agree," He kissed both the boys. "Welcome to the world, Deacon and Jaymes Claybourne. Your momma and daddy love you so very much."

* * *

A/N: Look at that two chapters in just a few hours of each other. I was really excited to get this one out to you guys. I told that this was gonna be a big chapter. Until next time please review.


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 18

"So what do you two think of your brothers?" Deacon asked Maddie and Daphne once they'd come back into the room. He stood proudly over the cribs the boys laid in.

"They're cute," Maddie smiled.

"They're really tiny." Daphne observed.

"Do you two want to know their names?" Rayna smiled. She looked exhausted, but happy.

"Well, of course, mom. They are only our baby brothers." Daphne was very excited. Deacon had spent a lot of time psyching her up to be a big sister.

"This guy here is Deacon Jr." Deacon pointed to one of the boys. "And this guy here is Jaymes."

"Who's older?" Maddie asked.

"Deacon is older by five minutes." Rayna was content to watch her two big babies fawn over their newborn brothers.

"Ray, we really gotta find a suitable nickname for that boy." Deacon chuckled.

"I think that Deac is a good nickname for him. No one really calls you that and that way you're not gonna answer to it when I'm yelling at him." Rayna grinned.

"You only say that 'cause you know that's what my pawpaw called me." He bent down and kissed her forehead.

"That's who I named him after. You just so happen to share the same first name purely coincidental." Rayna winked at him.

"Now, for the important question. Who wants to hold their baby brother?" He asked.

"Deacon, of course we both do." Daphne told him like he should have thought about that.

"Both of ya'll wash your hands and have a seat." He waited for the girls to do as he'd instructed. "Come here, big boy, you're gonna go see your sissy." He placed Jaymes in Maddie's arms. "And you are gonna go see the other sissy." He put Little Deacon in Daphne's arms. "Now, that's just 'bout the most perfect thing I've ever seen in my life." He wore an ear to ear grin on his face.

"That is pretty perfect and so worth the fact that I feel like I just got hit by a truck." Rayna slipped her hand into his. "I didn't break your hand did I?"

"You did a damn good job of tryin' to, but I'm gonna be just fine." He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. "Well, Squirt, what do you think? How's it feel to be a big sister?"

"It's only the most amazing thing ever. You were right it does make me feel more special." Daphne replied.

"They look so much alike and they look just like dad." Maddie seemed to be genuinely happy for a change.

"I should hope that they look alike they are identical twins. But they look a lot like you did as a newborn. Especially Deac you both came out brooding just like your daddy." Rayna had to fight off the wave of guilt that she sometimes felt well up.

"Hey, I don't brood that much." Deacon knew that was a lie.

Jaymes started fussing in Maddie's arms. "Uh, dad, help."

Deacon picked the baby up. "What's the matter with you? Huh? You're ok daddy's got you. Don't start fussin' at me like that already. There you go, Jayme, I promise I'm not so bad." He rocked him gently. "I know what your problem is. Here you go, momma, this boy is hungry." He handed him to Rayna so she could nurse him.

"If he's hungry you might as well give me Little Deacon too. We don't want them getting on opposite schedules." She told him.

"Daphne, let me borrow your brother for a little while I'll give him back when he's done eatin'." He gave him to Rayna as well.

"This is gonna be the fun part. I've done this before, but never with two of them at once. Wanna help me get situated, babe?" She didn't have a free hand to manage this on her own.

"Yeah, I think I can help you out." He agreed.

"Daph and I are gonna go find Aunt Tandy this is not something that I want to be in the room for." Maddie grabbed her sister's hand and bolted out of the room.

"That is so your daughter. The second I say somethin' that makes her uncomfortable she bolts." Rayna laughed as Deacon undid both sides of her gown for her so she could nurse.

"She'll get used to it, Ray. She's a teenager you know how she is." He chuckled.

"Oh, Deacon, they are both so precious." June smiled when she laid eyes on her grandsons for the first time.

"They are somethin' special aren't they, momma?" Deacon absolutely lit up every time that he talked about the boys.

"You couldn't deny them if you wanted to." June told him.

"How're you feeling, Rayna?" Scarlett asked.

"I feel like I was run over by a truck, but I'm very happy." Rayna had of course insisted on fixing her hair and putting on makeup before she'd let anyone visit.

"Momma, this is Little Deacon, and this is Jaymes." Deacon pointed to each one of his sons as he spoke.

"May I?" June asked as she went to pick Little Deacon up.

"Of course you can." Rayna told her.

"Hello, little boy, I'm your mawmaw." June cooed at the baby in her arms.

"Scarlett, you wanna hold your cousin?" Deacon asked.

"Uncle Deacon, you should know that I only came in here to see them and not you." Scarlett held out her arms.

"Real nice to know where I rank these days." Deacon laughed and handed Jaymes to her.

"You are just so sweet. Hopefully you have a better disposition than your daddy you look just like him you don't have to act like him too." Scarlett kissed his head.

"Your grandma is holdin' the brooder. He came up making a face just like the one his daddy makes when somethin' isn't to his satisfaction." Rayna informed her.

"Where's your momma, Scarlett?" Deacon asked about his sister. He knew that they weren't on the best terms, but he didn't think that she would miss being here for this.

"She said that she would be by a little later she had some things that she needed to take care of." Scarlett answered him.

"If you ask me ya'll need to make up. Paul Claybourne did enough to you kids without you lettin' him tear you apart." June came in sagely. "You're never gonna be as stubborn as your daddy are you, Deac? No you're far too sweet for that." She cooed at her grandson.

"Well, I do believe that I have just been told." Deacon knew better than to argue.

"Look at them. Those are two fine young southern gentlemen if ever I saw any. They are something to be proud of." Lamar fussed over his grandsons.

"Between you and Deacon I can't decide who's prouder of them. Ya'll both have your chests puffed out like a couple of roosters right now. I surprised that neither one of you are in the hallway passing out cigars. You'd think that I didn't have anything to do with bringing them into the world and that was all on you two." Rayna quipped. She held one of the boys and Deacon held the other.

"Babe, I know that you carried them for nine months, but I ain't gonna apologize for bein' proud of 'em. This is your third time it's only my first be patient with me." Deacon kissed her forehead.

"What are my grandsons' names?" Lamar completely ignored her previous statement he was far too enamored with his grandsons to care.

"Daddy, this is Deacon John Claybourne Jr." She indicated the baby she held in her arms. "And that is Jaymes Wyatt Claybourne." She pointed to the baby Deacon held. Jaymes' middle name was a peace offering from her to her father considering that how hard he'd been trying with her lately.

"You gave him my last name as his middle name." Lamar cleared his throat to keep the emotions out of his voice. Coming from her that meant more to him than he could say.

"You're his pawpaw of course I did. Daddy, you didn't have to buy out those Edgehill contracts for me, but you did it because you're trying. This is me trying." Rayna told him.

"Lamar, did you want to hold one of them?" Deacon offered. He wasn't crazy about his father-in-law and he probably never would be, but for Rayna's sake he was willing to pretend.

"I'd like that very much." Lamar gave him what could generously be called a smile.

"Here you go," Deacon transferred Jaymes into his arms.

"Hi, Jaymes, I'm your pawpaw. I sure am glad to meet you and your brother. You two are my first male descendants and I couldn't be more excited about you." Lamar spoke to the baby gently. "Deacon, don't let this go to your head, but you did something right for a change."

"Daddy," Rayna scolded him. " _I'm sorry_ " she mouthed to Deacon.

"What? I said he got something right." Lamar defended.

"Hey, baby brother, I'm sorry that I couldn't get here sooner I got held up with something." Beverly stood in the doorway of the hospital room.

"It's alright, you're here now come on in and meet your nephews, Bev." Rayna spoke up because she knew that Deacon wouldn't.

Deacon just stared at his sister with his jaw clenched.

Beverly peered down at the twins who were both sleeping in their cribs. "They look just like their daddy don't they?"

"They do, if I hadn't carried them for nine months I'd doubt that I had anything to do with making them." Rayna shot Deacon a look.

He just grunted in response.

"Deacon, are you seriously not gonna say a word to me?" Beverly arched her eyebrow at him.

"Talk to your sister. Whatever it is that's going on between you can be put on the backburner for today at least." Rayna didn't really want to be put in the position of being the one to handle Beverly.

"Did you come in peace or did you come to fight some more?" Deacon finally said.

"I don't want to fight with you. Believe it or not it's not something that I enjoy. I'm flawed and so are you. The difference is I accept you for yours and you hold mine over my head." Beverly got a bit of a dig in at him.

"I ain't holdin' nothin' over your head, Beverly. The same thing could be said of you. I left home goin' on thirty years ago and you still haven't forgiven me for it. I don't think you ever truly will. That bein' said I'm willin' to mend fences if you. You just know where I stand on certain subjects and my mind isn't gonna change." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Damn good thing I ain't here to talk about that. We have plenty of time to discuss that at a later date. I came to meet my nephews. Think you can help me out with that?" Beverly asked in reply.

"This is Deacon Jr. and this is Jaymes. Go on and hold them if you want to. I ain't gonna stop you." he pointed to each boy as he named them.

"Deacon," Rayna said his name in a warning tone.

"Come on, Deac, go see your Aunt Bev." He passed the baby to his sister. "You got his head?"

"I got him, baby brother, I've done this once myself." Beverly assured him.

"I know you've got him. I'm just makin' sure you're careful that's all." He wasn't really talking about her holding the baby and they both knew that.

* * *

Gunnar knocked loudly on Scarlett's front door and waited for her to answer. He was coming over for a writing session. They had been playing small gigs around town, but they really needed to come up with more songs to go on an album.

JC answered the door without a shirt on. "Hey, Gunnar, come on in. Scarlett is just gettin' ready." His chest and torso were ripped with muscles thanks to his time in the military.

"JC, what are you doin' here shirtless?" The look on Gunnar's face was confusion mixed with a little anger.

"I live here now. Didn't Scarlett tell you that Deacon gave me a room so I could get out of my living situation?" JC opened the door wider for him.

"No she forgot to mention that." Gunnar brushed past the younger man carrying his guitar.

"Just come in and make yourself at home. I'm gonna go throw a shirt on and I'll be right back." JC left him alone in the living room.

"Hey, Gunnar, I didn't keep you waitin' long did I? I'm still catching up on my sleep from havin' the girls the other night." Scarlett carried a pad of paper and a pen into the room.

"No I just got here. JC let me in. You, uh, didn't mention that he was living here now. Do you know yet when they are gonna let Rayna come home?" Gunnar felt something akin to jealousy surge through him.

"It wasn't worth mentioning. He is bunking down in Maddie's old room and he has been for a couple of weeks now. You know that he's Deacon's godson and well he is just lookin' out for him. Truthfully I don't mind the company. Momma has been stayin' in a hotel and grandma is gonna be stayin' with Rayna and Deacon for a few days. I think they are gonna let her come home today the boys are two days old and she's doin' well." She settled in to write with him.

"That's nice of him. I'm glad that you have someone here to keep you company. Good, that's good." He took his guitar out of the case.

"Gunnar, you didn't think that there was anything goin' on between JC and I did you? He's a nice kid, but that's exactly it he's still a kid." She looked amused.

"No, I didn't think that anything was going on between the two of you that would be crazy. Anyway Avery is gonna try to come over here and help us write today we will see how that goes. He's pretty busy producing Sadie right now." His cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"Scarlett, I'm heading out. Will has a gig today and I'm playin' roadie. I probably won't be back until late, so the house is yours." JC had put on a long sleeved t-shirt.

"Alright, sounds good to me." She smiled at him.

"See you later, see ya, Gunnar." JC nodded at the older man and left.

"So, what do you say we get to work?" Gunnar asked.

"Let's do it." She agreed. She snuck a quick glance at him and smiled to herself.

* * *

"Mom! Someone is at the door and Jayme is going off like a car alarm I think I broke him." Maddie called out at the top of her lungs.

"Maddie, baby girl, please don't scream. Jayme has that covered and daddy is getting the door. If you wanna take pity on your poor momma you will see about Deac while I tend to Jayme. He probably just wants to be changed." Rayna groaned. They hadn't been home long and she was getting around slowly. "Come here, you." She picked her screaming son up out of his bassinet. "What's goin' on that has you so upset? You just ate you can't be hungry." She checked his diaper. "You just need a dry diaper that's all."

"Deac is fine he's just laying there with his eyes wide open." Daphne reported. She was more hands on with the boys than Maddie was.

Deacon came into the room with Will just as Rayna finished putting a clean diaper on Jaymes. "Look who's here, Ray."

"Hey, Will, it's good to see you." Rayna smiled at him. "Deacon, your son was wet and he wasn't happy about it."

"I know, I heard him all the way at the front door." Deacon replied.

"I didn't mean to surprise you by just popping in like this, but I have my first writing session with Kevin today and I just wanted to thank you for setting that up." Will said shyly.

"It's no problem at all that's what we're here for. Anything you need you just have to ask." Rayna assured him.

"I also stopped by to bring you something. I would have come by the hospital, but I figured it was a mad house." Will held up two Texas Longhorn jerseys.

"Will, you didn't have to do that those are adorable." Rayna gushed.

"He did have to do it to screw with me. He knows that I hate the Longhorns." Deacon laughed and patted the younger man on the back. "Thanks, Will, you didn't have to get them anything."

"Yes I did. Rayna was real nice to give me a second chance after I'd burned her before. And you were good to me while we were on tour together." Will handed the jerseys to Deacon.

"I would have been stupid not to take another chance on you. Thank you for bringing them something. You'll have to stop by again when you can stay longer." Rayna hugged him.

Deacon picked Little Deacon up. "Deacon, Jayme, tell Uncle Will thank you for your present."

Will waved at the infants. "You dudes are welcome. I'll see ya'll later. I gotta go work on writing songs so your momma doesn't fire me."

"Good luck, man, I hope it goes well for you. Thanks for stopping by." Deacon shook his hand.

"I'll let myself out, you don't have to you got your hands full." Will waved as he walked out.

Rayna sat down on the couch. "Oh, thank you for goin' to sleep that easily, Jayme."

"LD, here is out too." Deacon sat beside her.

"Don't call him that," She leaned against him half asleep.

"Ray, go nap you're supposed to sleep when they sleep. I got 'em, babe." He was looking forward to having some alone time with the boys.

She passed Jaymes off to him and pecked his lips. "Thank you, babe, I'm exhausted."

"You girls go wait on your momma. The boys and I are gonna sit right here and take a little nap." He situated one of the boys of each side of his chest.

"Deacon John, you go on up and take a nap with her. You need to sleep when they're sleepin' too. That's why I'm stayin' here. I have the girls to help me, now go on." June skillfully picked both the boys up.

"You two help Grandma June we will be right upstairs if you need anything." Rayna took Deacon's hand.

"I don't know why we have to have so damn many pillows on this bed." Deacon chucked the pillows off the bed and pulled the covers back.

"Because they are pretty and make the bed look nice." She fell into the bed blindly.

"They are too much damn work." He crawled in bed behind her and wrapped his arm around her.

"I love you, but don't touch me right now you're the reason I can barely walk right now. Your sons both have big heads." She mumbled only half awake.

He pulled the blankets up over them and laced their fingers together. "I won't hold like I normally do, I'll just hold your hand."

She was already sound asleep and the only reply he got was in the form of a cute little snoring noise.

* * *

"Now that this side is golden brown we are just going to flip it over and cook the other side." June was teaching the girls how to make fried chicken.

"How do you know how long to cook it?" Daphne asked.

"I've done it so many times now I just know. When you get the hang of it, it comes second nature like with anything I suppose. Until you get good enough to do that we will use a timer it's supposed to be ten to twelve minutes on each side error on the side of caution." June put the chicken into the pan.

"You're really good at that." Daphne smiled.

"I've had a lot of practice, sweetie." June smiled back. "Now, you watch that while I peek at your brothers."

"I just looked at them and they were fine, grandma." Maddie spoke up.

"I know that, but I wanna look at 'em again. I'm a momma and a grandma it's my job to worry." June looked at the boys and found that they were both slumbering peacefully.

"Look at this, Ray, momma got both those girls in the kitchen." Deacon and Rayna had finally gotten up from their nap.

"I see that, she's a little bit of a miracle worker." Rayna was really grateful to have the extra help around. "June, thank you so much for keeping an eye on them while we slept."

"It was my pleasure they were absolute angels. They are my grandchildren you never have tot thank me for that. They should be waking up any minute to be fed you two have perfect timing." June was happy to be there to help. She was beyond thrilled that her son was letting her back in again.

"Good, I want to keep them on the same schedule as each other if at all possible." Rayna went over to look at them.

"Ray, look at this face Jayme is makin' in his sleep it's the same face that Daphne makes." Deacon smiled. "Momma, you made you two friends for life between Squirt and Elvis they both love havin' you here."

"I love bein' here. It's been a long time since Scarlett was young and I got to bond with my grandchildren. You and Rayna don't have to keep thankin' me for bein' here I'm right where I wanna be." June kissed his cheek.

"We just really love having you here and not just because you make the best fried chicken in the whole south." Rayna hugged her.

Deacon stood back just watching for a second he didn't think he'd ever been more content with anyone or anything than he was right now.

* * *

"Dad, oh my goodness what are you doing here?" Daphne launched herself into Teddy's arms.

"I came by to see you and your sister." Teddy hugged her to him tightly.

"Maddie is in the other room with mom and Deacon come on." Daphne drug him into the other room eagerly. "Maddie, look who's here."

"Hey, dad," Maddie gave him a hug.

"Teddy," Deacon nodded stiffly.

"Deacon," Teddy pursed his lips.

"Teddy, you're gonna forgive me if I don't get up at the moment I can barely move." Rayna half smiled at him.

"I'll come to you." Teddy kissed her cheek chastely. "You look wiped out."

"Smart ass, it's not as easy the older you get or with two at the same time." Rayna told him.

"Dad, do you wanna see them?" Daphne wanted to show her brothers off to her dad.

"Yeah I do," Teddy agreed.

"Dad, that's Deacon and that's Jaymes." Maddie was actually pretty excited to show them off too.

"Maddie, you looked just like this when you were born." Teddy observed.

"That's what mom said too." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Because it's true, baby girl." Rayna chuckled.

Deacon was hit by a pang in his chest that he couldn't readily place, but deep down he knew it was regret for missing that part of Maddie's life. He forced a smile on his face and swallowed it down like he always did.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys like it. Until next time please review.


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 19

"Thank you so, so much for letting me sleep in this morning. You have no idea how much that means to me." Rayna wrapped her arms around Deacon from behind. "How were they?"

"They were angels like always. I'm startin' to think that we got defective babies, Ray. They don't cry a whole lot and they sleep pretty good." Deacon poured her a cup of coffee.

"They aren't defective we've just got them on a really good schedule. Having your momma here for a week helped a lot." She kissed his cheek and then went over to check on the boys. "Good morning, my two handsome men. Were you good for daddy?" She bent and kissed both of them.

"They are always good. They had their bottles after I took the girls to school and I played music for them until they went back to sleep. They just woke up again and they are both in a good mood. I sing for them and they just coo right along with me." The first feeding of the morning after the girls got off to school belonged to him. That was his time to bond with his sons and give Rayna time to sleep in or do whatever else she wanted.

"I can't believe they are three weeks old already. You gonna be ok alone with them for a little while today?" She picked Little Deacon up.

"Of course I'll be ok alone with them. What's today?" He picked Jaymes up.

"I have to host Juliette's baby shower today. I only ask, because you're basically gonna be without a safety net. Scarlett and the boys are out opening for Rascal Flatts, we sent your momma away to that resort to just relax for a couple weeks, and Tandy is in meetings all day. That's gonna present you with a little bit of a problem when it comes to picking the girls up from school. We still have reporters camped out all the time trying to catch a glimpse of these two." She listed off for him.

"I've got it handled already, Ray. You just let me worry about it. You go do whatever it is that you women do at these things. The boys and I will have guy time." He reassured her with a kiss.

"You're too good to me, love. You are the best husband and father that any woman could ask for. I just love watching you with our children." She smiled against his lips. "But, seriously how do you plan to pick the girls up from school?"

"JC is in town The Triple Exes' drummer is all healed up. The girls know and like him and he can protect 'em so he's gonna do it for me." He explained patiently.

"Deacon, your middle name should be I Know A Guy. I can't count how many times I've heard those words come out of your mouth over the years. And you've always come through big time. We really have to do something about all the press swarming and you're not gonna like the way we have to deal with it." She rested her forehead against his.

"I know how we're gonna have to handle it and you're right I don't like it, but we can't keep bein' afraid to take them out into public. So we will do what we gotta do just this once." He gave a resigned sigh.

"We had those family pictures done when they were first born. I'll have Bucky figure somethin' out." She rubbed his back with her free hand.

"He always does Bucky is a miracle worker." He kissed her forehead. "If you're gonna make it to Juliette's shower on time you better start getting ready now. We both know that you're always late."

"Deacon John, I'm callin' your momma and tellin' her you are bein' mean to me." She handed Little Deacon to him. "But, you're right I do need to get a move on."

"You do not call a man's momma on him no matter what he does to you. That is a card that you don't play. Besides that she'd take your side over mine." He wore a look of mock indignation on his face.

"Then you better be extra nice to me because I have her number on speed dial." She winked at him before going to get ready.

* * *

"Oh my God, Deacon, these boys look more and more like you the older they get." Sadie gushed over Little Deacon and Jaymes. She'd come over to do some writing with Deacon.

"And they got the lung capacity of their momma. They don't cry much, but when they do you better believe they mean business especially Jayme. Good lord that boy has got a set of lungs on him." Deacon beamed with pride every time he talked about his children.

"How do you tell them apart?" She chuckled.

"I would like to be able to say that we just know, but that would be a lie. Daphne and I had to bust out the ink pad and compare their footprints once, but the older they get the more their little personalities and quirks emerge and that makes it easier. Deac is the quiet one he's just as content to lay in his swing and be left alone as he is to be held. Jayme on the other hand will voice his displeasure about bein' left alone. He likes for his sisters to fuss over him." He answered her.

"You sure you're up to writing with me and keeping an eye on them?" She asked just to be sure that she wasn't putting too much on him.

"Of course I'm up for it. I'm startin' to forget what it's like out in the real world where people don't spit up and pee on me all the time." He laughed. "What do you wanna write 'bout today?"

"I've just been thinking that it really gets under my skin that Pete got away with what he did and that he got paid for it. I don't know how to say it though." She admitted.

"Just let me grab the guitar and we will try to put that down on paper. I know that you have to be at Juliette's shower later so I'll try to make this quick." He checked the boys to make sure that they were both ok and then he grabbed his guitar. "Let's get to work."

* * *

JC's face broke out in a grin as Maddie approached his truck. He was leaning up against the side to make sure that she couldn't miss him. "Hey, Maddie,"

"Hey, JC, why are you picking us up?" Maddie flashed him a smile.

"Your mom had something that she had to do today and your dad asked me if I wouldn't mind doing him a favor." He shrugged his shoulders like it was no big deal.

"It's really nice to have someone my own age to hang out with for a change." She leaned up against the truck next to him while they waited for Daphne.

"I know what you mean. I've been doin' these gigs with all these people who are older than me and it's just nice to be reminded what it's like to be a normal teenager sometimes." He agreed with her.

"You're not a normal teenager though, aren't you like special forces or something?" She asked him.

"I'm a green beret. I'm with the reserve unit. It was just somethin' to do after I graduated. Once I got all done with trainin' I came up here and I haven't looked back. I disappear one weekend a month to meet my obligations, but this is where I belong. There was nothin' left for me in Texas." He gave her a little bit of his story.

"Well, I'm glad that you came to Nashville. You have no idea how good it is to have an actual friend to vent to. Being the daughter of three public figures isn't as fun as you'd think it'd be." She told him.

"I can see where that would be a pain in the ass considerin' that your dad had to get me to come pick you up because he can't leave the house without a bunch of photographers followin' him." He could see the point that she was trying to make.

"So, like if you ever wanna write together or anything you should let me know. I mean you know where the house is and I know where you're staying. It would be nice for me to have someone other than my sister to bounce ideas off of." She suggested.

"Yeah, I'd like that a lot. I just may have to take you up on that offer." He smiled at her.

"Hey, JC, you taking us home?" Daphne asked as she walked up.

"I sure am if that's ok with you." He replied.

"That's fine by me." Daphne agreed.

He opened the door for them. "In that case, ladies, climb on in."

* * *

"You know that I hate you a little bit right?" Juliette asked Rayna. The baby shower had been a success and they had managed to get through it without her having any major temper tantrums.

"Why?" Rayna was afraid to know the answer to that.

"Because you just had twins and you already look that good. And not to mention your stupid perfect hair." Juliette was only half joking.

"It's ok Jeff Fordham told me it looked like I ate a baby hippo a few weeks ago. I got pretty big. Most of it was the boys thank god. I gained like twenty-five pounds and I've been busting my ass the last few weeks to get it off again. I have that concert in three weeks that I have to do and God forbid I'm not in top form." Rayna rolled her eyes.

"Like I said you're not human. There's no way that you can be." Juliette struggled to stand up and she gasped. "Oh my God,"

"Now you're just bein' a little bit dramatic, Juliette." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"No, my water just broke." Juliette grabbed her belly.

"Ok, just stay calm, we are gonna get to the hospital and we will call Avery." Rayna tried to keep her calm when she felt anything, but calm herself.

* * *

Gunnar cast a glance at Scarlett over the edge of his notebook. She had her headphones in and was writing in her notebook.

Avery looked at the other man and rolled his eyes. "Gunnar, you know instead of being a creeper you could just tell her that you still have feelings for her." He suggested to him.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Gunnar gave a nervous laugh.

"You need to say something before you lose the chance. As a matter of fact if you don't say something soon I'm going to say it for you." Avery shot him a threatening look.

"I think that living with a crazy hormonal pregnant woman has taken its toll on you." Gunnar turned things around on him.

Avery just gave him a look that said watch me. He wadded up a paper ball and threw it at Scarlett. "Hey, Scarlett," He called out to get her attention.

"You're nuts and I have to go." Gunnar jumped up and went back to the bunks.

Scarlett looked up with an arched eyebrow in time to see Gunnar's retreating form. "What's got his panties in a knot? He's been weird since this whole tour started. I don't know whether it's safe to talk to him have the time or not. He's bein' 'bout as moody as Deacon was right after Rayna chose Luke over him."

"If you think that there is something up with him you need to ask him about it. I'm in this band with you guys and I would really love it if things weren't always this weird. I swear it's like being in high school. I'm not getting in the middle of it, I'm just telling you two to work it out for all of our sakes." Avery told her bluntly. He had it hard enough being married to Juliette with her mood swings. He didn't need that from Gunnar and Scarlett too. One crazy person to deal with was his quota for the rest of his life.

"I'll go talk to him, but I don't know what good it's gonna do. He's been real squirrely lately." Scarlett got up to follow Gunnar to the back of the bus. She found him standing by his bunk putting something in his back. "Gunnar, do you mind tellin' me just what the hell your problem is with me lately?"

"I don't have a problem, Scarlett." He denied.

"For someone who doesn't have a problem you sure as hell act like you do. First you got all weird because JC is my roommate and you thought somethin' was goin' on between the two of us. And you've been getting' real antsy every time I so much as even think about talkin' to another man. That's why I think you have a problem." She told him bluntly.

"I was just being a concerned friend that's all. I mean he's a nice enough kid, but we don't really know that much about him. He could be some psycho killer for all we know." He was being ridiculous and he could recognize that. He just didn't want to say what he was really feeling.

"Gunnar, that is the most ridiculous thing that I have ever heard. He is still a boy and he's a nice boy at that, but one that I have absolutely no interest in." She chuckled lightly. She could see what he wasn't saying and she felt the same way that he did, but she wanted him to be the one to say it first.

The bus lurched to a stop and Scarlett fell into Gunnar's arms.

"I'm getting off this bus. My wife is having a baby and I am catching a plane. You two are playing this show without me try not to destroy this band while I'm gone." Avery announced loudly. He grabbed his stuff and rushed off the bus in a hurry.

* * *

"Ok, it looks like we are on our own for dinner tonight. Momma got held with somethin'. I swear that woman is gonna be late to her own damn funeral." Deacon spoke to Jaymes as he fed him his bottle. "How's Little Deacon doin' over there for you, Squirt?"

"He's eating fine just like he always does." Daphne answered happily.

"Let's burp 'em and switch. You know your momma says that we are supposed to do that for some reason." He didn't pretend to understand some of the things that came out of Rayna's mouth. She'd read a lot of things about twins that confused him and he only listened to about half of what she said when she was lecturing him. He put the infant over his shoulder and patted his back.

"It's so they both get equal time and that's only when she's nursing. No way are we switching. Jayme is the spit up king. Deac hardly ever spits up on anyone." She giggled.

"That's fair for someone and I don't think it's me." He teased her.

"Deacon, he spit up in my mouth once. I'm not burping him." She laughed harder and burped the little boy in her arms. She was really good with the twins.

"He spits up in my mouth and on my shirts all the time. Why do you think momma makes me burp him?" He laughed too. He smiled when Jaymes let out a loud burp. "That's daddy's boy." Only he would be proud of that. "And there's daddy's other boy." He added when Little Deacon burped.

"Mom says that you're not supposed to be proud of the fact that they burp so loud." She reminded him.

"She says a lot of things to me. You should know by now that I'm always in trouble. Why don't you give me Deac and go see what your sister wants for dinner?" He put the bottle back in Jaymes' mouth.

Daphne laid Little Deacon across his father's legs and handed Deacon the bottle. "If we are on our own for dinner does that mean we are eating spaghetti out of a can?"

"No, we aren't eating spaghetti out of a can. We are ordering take out. We are staging a strike. If she's gonna leave the five of us alone then we aren't cooking for her." He joked. He skillfully fed both the boys their bottles at the same time. He'd gotten a lot of practice feeding them solo.

* * *

"I don't know what I was thinking I can't do this. I can't even remember my breathing. How am I supposed to take care of a child if I can't even remember how to bring her into the world?" Juliette screamed. She laid in a hospital bed wearing a gown.

"You're gonna do fine. You're doing great just remember your breathing." Rayna coached her. This was the last thing in the world that she wanted to be doing at the moment. With Juliette around it sometimes felt like she had five children instead of four.

"No I've been an absolutely horrible person. I feel like I'm being split in two and I'm gonna end up doing this alone because my husband isn't here." Juliette breathed heavily.

"Avery is on his way and he will be here any minute. He got off that bus and onto a plane as soon as we called him." Rayna reassured her.

"No this is me being punished for all the rotten shit that I've done in my life." Juliette cried.

"Oh, honey, you're not being punished you're just having a baby it only feels like you're being punished." Rayna took her hand and smoothed her hair back off her forehead. She was starting to panic if Avery didn't get there soon she was going to be the one who was in the room when his daughter was born.

Avery bless his heart rushed into the room at that moment. "I'm here, I'm here," He was out of breath from running around like a crazy man.

"You made it," Juliette smiled at him.

"There's no where else in the world I rather be than here with my two girls." He went to her side and took her hand.

Rayna stepped back and covered her face with her hands. She was so relieved that he had showed up that she couldn't put it into words.

"Now, let's do this, we've got this." He coached her.

Rayna stuck around long enough for the baby to be born. She smiled in Juliette's direction.

" _Thank you,"_ Juliette mouthed to her.

Rayna nodded her head and walked out the door. She pulled out her phone. "Hey, babe, on my way home now. How are my boys?" She spoke into the phone when Deacon picked up.

* * *

"Gunnar, what was that out there on that stage tonight? Do you care to tell me why you felt the need to give the audience our history together?" Scarlett demanded with her hands on her hips.

"I just thought that it helped put things into context that's all. I don't know what you think I'm up to, but you're giving me far too much credit." Gunnar crossed his arms over his chest.

"I think that you know damn well what I'm talking about and you just don't have the balls to say it to my face." She called him out. She walked back to her dressing room and he followed behind her dutifully.

"No, I don't know what you're talking about. If I knew what you were talking about we could get this whole thing resolved." He leaned up against the doorjamb.

She studied the vase of flowers that were on the vanity and picked the card up so she could read it.

"Where'd you get the flowers?" He sounded casual, but he was fishing for information.

"They are from Deacon and Rayna. This right here is what I'm talking about, Gunnar. You're being weird about stuff." She pointed out to him.

"I'm not being weird about anything. I was being friendly I just asked who sent you flowers." He argued with her.

"Gunnar, here is the thing unless you tell me what you want I don't know. And I don't think you will either unless you admit it to yourself." She was done being gentle with him. He didn't seem to get subtle hints.

"Again, I have no damn clue what you're talking about." He feigned ignorance.

"Oh, to hell with it." She grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled him into a kiss.

He barely had time to get the door shut behind him before she started undoing the buttons on his shirt.

* * *

"There are my boys, how was it today just the three of you?" Rayna came in and took one of the boys off Deacon's chest and sat down on the couch beside him.

"We survived just fine. We didn't have a single problem at all. They were even good while I wrote with Sadie for a little while this afternoon." Deacon rubbed his son's back to soothe him.

"That's what I like to hear. How were the girls?" She asked.

"I didn't have any problems out of them either. Homework is done and they are both in their rooms. We had dinner and we played around a little bit with some songs. You didn't miss anything much at all." He leaned over and kissed her.

"You are such an amazing daddy. Thank you so much for everything that you do to make this easier on me. I couldn't ask for a better partner." She rubbed her nose against his.

"You're very welcome, baby. Thank you for taking a chance and doing this with me." He grinned against her lips.

She kissed along his jawline. "JC have any problems getting the girls from school?"

"Nope, he actually stayed for a little bit and wrote some with Maddie before he got a call from Bucky and he had to go get on a plane to play backup guitar for Scarlett and Gunnar. I think the two of them are gettin' to be pretty good friends." He moaned softly from the attention she was paying to him. "Don't get me goin', woman. We have another three weeks before we can even think about things like that."

"That's good I don't think he has very many friends in town. It's fitting that our daughter is friends with Vince's son. I'm well aware how many weeks we have before we can do that again. It just so happens to coincide with my tenth anniversary Opry concert." She rested her forehead against his.

"Vince would get a pretty big kick out of our kids bein' friends. Believe me I'm countin' down the seconds. I can't believe that it's been ten years already." He pressed another kiss to her lips.

"Neither can I, babe." She smiled down as she felt her son nuzzle against her chest. "Is it time for you eat, piglet? Is that why you're rooting against momma's chest? That means you've gotta be Deac you're always hungry." She pulled the front of her shirt down and got him latched. "Give me Jayme, daddy, he's probably hungry too." She got him latched on to the other side.

"It's so funny that that's how we tell them apart. Deacon is the little piglet and Jayme is the spit up king. He's traumatized Squirt she refuses to burp him ever again." He laughed softly. He ran his hand over both the boys' heads. He liked to have some contact with them while they nursed.

"We better be careful she's the only one who will actually help with them as it is. She handled spit up in the mouth a lot better than Maddie would have. Oh lord, that would have been a meltdown of epic proportions." She laughed along with him.

"Maddie loves 'em well enough she's just been kinda standoffish with 'em lately. I think I need to take her out and do somethin' just me and her so she doesn't feel left out. She's got a pretty big birthday comin' up in a few weeks and I thought that I would take her out for some drivin' lessons." He ran his hand over his beard.

"That would be really nice and something that you could do just the two of you. I know that Teddy hasn't taken her out and I just can't do it. I'd be too nervous." She shook her head. She grimaced and readjusted Little Deacon. "Deacon John, I know that you don't have any teeth, but that still hurts momma when you do that."

"I was thinkin' the same thing. That this could be the one thing that I have with her that no one else got to before me. Lord knows that I don't want you teachin' her to drive. I've seen how you drive. You go ten miles an hour too fast while tryin' to do business and puttin' your makeup on at stoplights. The thought of Maddie drivin' the way you do scares the shit out of me." He grinned at her.

"I have places to be in a hurry and I have to multitask sometimes." She stuck her tongue out at him playfully.

"Because you're always runnin' late. You could leave the house an hour early and still be late because you got distracted by a shoe sale or somethin'." He knew that she wanted to smack him, but she couldn't because she didn't have a free hand at the minute.

"That is not true. If I were goin' to a shoe sale I would clear my mornin' so I didn't have to rush. You've been waitin' on me for years and you'll continue to happily do so." She settled for kissing him since she couldn't smack him.

"Oh my God, you two are so gross. Do you have to always be making out where we can see it? Seriously, that's how you got those two crib midgets." Maddie walked by them on her way to the kitchen and rolled her eyes.

"Hey, don't be so sassy. You wanted us together we happen to really like each other." Deacon told her.

"Whatever, dad," Maddie grabbed a bottle of water and headed back up to her room.

"Night, sunshine, I love you." Rayna called after her.

"You know, I'm startin' to think that she got that mouth from her Aunt Tandy and neither of us are to blame for it." His tone was serious, but his eyes said that he was playing.

"I like that idea I agree with that. There is no way that she got that mouth from either one of us." She teased.

He kissed her again and ran his hand through his hair. "I love you,"

"Darlin', I love you to the moon and the stars and back you know that, but you have got to go take a shower. You have three-day old spit up stains on your shirt." She wrinkled up her nose.

"I know that I've had these clothes on way too long, but these two little guys are more than worth how hectic they've made things lately." He kissed both their heads.

"They are one of the best surprises you've ever given me. The other one just stomped up the stairs because we had the audacity to kiss in front of her." She kissed him again. "Seriously, babe, shower right after you burp the spit up king. I don't want him throwing up in my mouth either." She passed Jaymes to him.

"Boy, you better watch yourself you've got half the women in this house not wantin' to be 'round you after feedin' time." He put him over his shoulder to burp.

"Well, you already have the spit up stains all over you one more ain't gonna hurt at this point." She laughed at the face he made.

* * *

A/N: I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I screwed with the timeline of the show a little bit to make it fit this story. I promise I've got a ton of good stuff coming up for you. Until next time please review.


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Things a Momma Don't Know by Mica Roberts and She Ain't Right by Lee Brice.

* * *

Chapter 20

Maddie padded into the music room fully dressed and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "Dad, what are we doing up so early on a Saturday? The twins aren't even up yet this is torture."

"That's why we are up so early the boys won't be up for awhile yet. I wanted us to have some time together just the two of us." Deacon too was dressed and ready to go for the day.

"Seriously? This could have waited until a decent hour, dad." She yawned.

"Maddie, please sit down and join me for a minute." He looked at her with pleading eyes. He really wanted to have this talk with her.

"Fine," She threw herself down on the couch beside him with a groan.

He picked up the baby book that Rayna had given him and laid it on his lap. "I think that things have been hard on you since the twins were born and I think that you also may not want to admit that so you've been actin' out and moody. I wasn't there for you from the start and I should have been plain and simple. I'm sorry that I didn't get those moments with you. There are still things that we can have together and there were moments that we had together that no one else got."

"Dad, I'm fine, really I am." She looked down so he wouldn't see the tears in her eyes.

"Sweetheart, it's ok to not be fine. You've gone through a lot of changes lately. It's ok to be sad or mad. You can blame me or take it out on me if you want. I just think that you're gonna regret it if you distance yourself from your baby brothers. They already love you and look up to you so much. Don't let anyone or anythin' take that from you." He brought her eyes up to meet his.

"It's just not fair, dad, why are they so special that they get you from the beginning? I know that it sounds horrible and I hate it that I feel like this. I love them both so much and I don't want to feel like this." She let a tear fall down her cheek.

"Can I show you somethin'?" His heart broke seeing her so upset.

"What is it?" She asked him.

He opened up the first page of the book to the picture of the first time he had held her. "You were only a little older than the boys here. I'd just gotten out of rehab and your momma brought you to see me. I always used to wonder why she did it, but now I know." He flipped the page. "This is our first tour together. Your momma just needed a break and you were never content with anyone else in the band, but you would let me take you to lay in my bunk with me."

"Really?" She gave him a small smile.

"Really," He pointed to a picture. "This is your first guitar lesson at the tender age of seven months old. Even that young you liked the feel of the guitar strings under your fingers."

She ran her fingers over the pictures when he turned the pages and she listened to the stories he told her. "Where did you get this? This is amazing."

"Your momma gave it to me. She made it just for us over the years. Maddie, she did the best that she could for us. She kept us close to each other, so we'd always have those memories to hold on to. She knows that she was wrong and she'd give anythin' to take it back, but we can't get that back we have now. You crawled to me first and you walked to me first I got that." He hugged her tightly.

"You know, dad, someday I hope I find someone that loves me the way that you love mom. You have to love someone deeply to be able to forgive them for something like that." She hugged him back.

"I want that for you too. I just want him to be better than I am. Now, do you wanna know why I really woke you up this early on a Saturday?" He smiled at her.

"Why?" She asked.

"I thought that we could do some drivin' lessons and then get some breakfast. How's that sound to you?" He asked her.

"Dad, that would be the most amazing thing ever." She kissed his cheek.

"Then, come on let's get a move on." He held out the keys to his truck to her.

"Seriously? You're gonna let me drive your truck?" She asked excitedly. She took his keys.

"Yeah, seriously, I'm gonna hope that driver's ed that we've had you in at school has done the trick. There's no way that you drive as bad as your momma. That woman has wrecked more of my trucks than I care to count." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"You're gonna tell me all about that over breakfast right?" She liked it when her parents gave up the dirt that they had on each other.

"Of course, it's part of the deal. Come on let's see what you got." He kissed the top of her head.

* * *

"Will, you're sounding great that's exactly the kind of depth that we wanted to hear from you." Bucky stepped into the sound booth to talk to Will.

"Thanks, Bucky, it was a hard fought battle, but Kevin finally got a song out of me." Will shook his hand.

"If he gets more songs like that out of you he can take as long as he needs. You only need nine more to fill out an album. I'm very impressed, Kevin." Bucky turned to the other man.

"It's all Will, Bucky, I'm just bringing out the natural talent that he has inside." Kevin put his arm around Will's shoulders.

Will stiffened up slightly and moved over. "Well, I'm doin' my best anyway."

"I really like it. I knew that you two would be a great fit for each other when Deacon suggested it." Bucky told him.

"Deacon suggested that I work with Kevin?" Will stopped short of breathing a sigh of relief. If it had been Deacon's suggestion then he had nothing to worry about.

"Yeah, think of him as a mentor he's more than just another artist use him he can help. He said you had a story to tell with your music and we should get Kevin to help you tell it that you were more than the beer and truck stuff that Edgehill had you doing." Bucky explained to him.

"I've written with Deacon a few times. If he thinks you're that good take it as a compliment. I know that it's a pretty big compliment that he thinks I can help you grow as an artist." Kevin could tell that he made Will uncomfortable.

"As a matter of fact I'm gonna email a demo of that song to Rayna for him to listen to and see what he thinks. You don't email Deacon directly he never checks it." Bucky replied.

"Well, hey, Buck. I didn't expect to run into you here I was just comin' to talk to Will about bein' on the next leg of my tour when it starts up again." Luke walked into the room.

"Hey, Luke, I was just checking on the progress he's been making with Kevin. Just send the contract through the office and I will take care of that for you." Bucky nodded in his direction.

"I'll be sure to do that of course. I just wanted to touch base. Wheelin' and Dealin' missed out on a hell of an artist when we lost him to Ya'll." Luke replied.

"We weren't gonna miss out on him twice. Like I said just send the contract over and I will set up a meeting." Bucky repeated. "Will, great work, if you need anything at all don't hesitate to call me."

"Will do, Bucky." Will agreed.

* * *

JC laid out across the couch on the bus playing around on his guitar. He couldn't help, but notice the tension that seemed to be present between Scarlett and Gunnar. The rest of the band had noticed as well. The two barely spoke and did their best to avoid making eye contact with each other. He let it go and didn't say anything because he was just happy to have a paying gig, but he could tell that something was up with them.

"Excuse me," Gunnar said as he brushed past Scarlett to make his way to the back of the bus.

"Yeah, no problem." Scarlett sat on the couch opposite JC.

"Trouble in paradise?" JC asked his roommate.

"Gunnar and I are fine." She lied. Things had been strange between them since their encounter in her dressing room. He still couldn't admit that he wanted to be with her and she wasn't going to go out of her way to make things easy on him until he did.

"Well, the rest of the band has picked up on the fact that things are fine and they are starting to talk. I just thought that I would let you know." He replied. The reason he was so open with her was because she was one of his only friends.

"Let me ask you a question. Why are guys so weird about stuff?" She asked.

"Because we don't like to talk 'bout our feelings. We expect you to know how we feel from just a look or the things that we aren't sayin'." He chuckled.

"That is no way to go through life. How are ya'll supposed to get what you want if you don't say it?" She rolled her eyes.

"Ya'll women are supposed to be mind readers and know what we want better than we do." He teased.

"I can't imagine why you're single." She shot back at him.

"I'm single cause I wanna be and because the last girlfriend I had decided that she rather go to college single and have fun without me weighting her down." He kept picking on his guitar.

"Sounds like a country song to me. You gotta write what you know." She replied.

"I've had a good case of writer's block lately. Maddie offered to do some writing with me and I'm gonna take her up on that." He informed her.

"So you and Maddie are gettin' close?" She asked.

"Yes we are. It's good to have a friend closer to my age. And she's crazy talented, but she comes by that naturally." He shrugged.

"JC, I like you and we are friends, but stay away from my cousin." Scarlett warned him.

"Scarlett, it's not even like that we are just friends." He protested.

"And you're just a teenage boy. I know how your mind works." She arched her eyebrow at him.

"I swear we are just friends. This isn't like with you and Gunnar." He assured her.

"Hey, I told you that there is nothing with me and Gunnar." She corrected him.

"Sure there isn't." He smirked and went back to playing his guitar.

* * *

"Hey, ya'll, how did the driving lesson go." Rayna was up tending to the boys when Deacon and Maddie got back.

"She's really good, Ray. She's a better driver than you." Deacon kissed her cheek and picked one of the boys up. "Hey, Bubba, did you miss daddy? Daddy sure missed you." He smiled as he watched Maddie pick her other brother up.

"Hi, Jayme, look at how happy you are today." Maddie cooed at him. "Mom, is it true that you wrecked like all of dad's trucks?"

"I didn't wreck of all his trucks. You can't listen to anything that he says. He exaggerates when it comes to that." Rayna shot him a look.

"So maybe it was only one or two or three, but it wasn't all of them I should have just said the majority." Deacon laughed.

"Deacon, keep up with me today and I'm not going to tell you the thing that I have to tell you." Rayna warned him. She pointed with her eyes to where Maddie stood holding Jaymes.

He smiled at her in response. "How ever will I live without knowing what you have to tell me?" He kissed Little Deacon's face. "Did momma talk your ear off without daddy here to protect you from her?"

"Smartass, anyway Tandy is wanting some time alone with all the kids and it just so happens that there is an open spot at the Bluebird if you want to play." Rayna reported.

"So, wait, we could have a few hours to ourselves out in public and we have a free babysitter. Did I hear that right?" He grinned.

"You absolutely heard that right. I'm goin' with or without you so you better start bein' nice to me." Rayna smiled.

"Mom, is it true that I crawled and walked to dad first?" Maddie broke up their conversation.

"It's true, your dad was sitting on the bus playing his guitar and you crawled over there to strum on the strings. When you walked we were rehearsing for a show at the Ryman. I had you sitting on the stage beside me and your dad was running late for some reason. The minute he walked up on the stage you politely stood up and walked over to him. I don't think he would have been any prouder of you if he had known you were his." Rayna kissed her head.

"I took my first steps on stage at the Ryman?" Maddie's eyes got big.

"You sure did. It was one of the proudest moments of my life. I remember how special I felt that Rayna's daughter was so attached to me that she chose to walk to me for the first time. That's the minute I knew that I was gonna be able to handle it after all. I could stay sober and be in the band without bein' with her. If only so I never disappointed you the way I disappointed her. You and I we were bonded from the first moment we met. I just felt like I wanted to do whatever I could to keep a smile on your face." He jiggled his son lightly.

"Deacon, you are gonna make me cry." Rayna wiped her misty eyes.

"You had to know that I loved her and Daphne both. Those two hung on my side like two little barnacles when we were on tour." He smiled at the memory.

"That they did. Daphne is still your shadow. This one has grown out of it mostly and she is too cool to hang around us now." Rayna pointed at Maddie.

Maddie handed her brother to her mother. "That's it I can't be around you crazy people anymore. I'm gonna go text JC while he still has time to talk. I need to run some lyrics for a song by him." She shook her head and walked out of the room.

* * *

" _I threw my bags in his backseat, gave my mom a kiss on the cheek. Said don't worry 'bout me I'll be fine. My momma never liked him much always thought he was kinda rough, but nothin' in this world can change a girl's mind no use tryin'"_ Sadie was up on stage with Deacon at the Bluebird and they were testing out the song they had written together the other day.

" _Mom, he's a real go getter. Love hasn't ever felt better. You won't believe all the things he's promisin' me. California that's where we're goin' he swears he can make a fortune. I know you don't think I should go there's some things a momma don't know."_ Deacon added his voice to the chorus.

" _The money ran out in Vegas she's an all night diner waitress. She'd do anything just to get by."_ Deacon sang.

" _The hardest work he's done on his big career's a fifth of whiskey and a case of beer. When I talk to momma I lie I've got my pride."_ She sang.

" _Mom, he's a real go getter love hasn't ever felt better. You won't believe all the things he's promisin' me. California that's where we're goin' he swears he can make a fortune. Hope my voice don't let my secrets show still some things a momma don't know."_ They hit the chorus together again.

" _Like wakin' up to broken dreams everyday like knowin' there's a little one on the way."_ Deacon belted out.

" _Like believin' that someone you love can change. Like hidin' the bruises on my face just for everyone else's sake."_ Sadie wailed.

" _Mom, he's a real go getter love hasn't ever felt better. You won't believe all the things he's promisin' me. California that's where we're goin' he swears he can make a fortune. Momma says baby you can come back home, but there's some things a momma don't know."_ They finished the song together.

The crowd at the Bluebird erupted in applause.

"Thank ya'll so much. It's an honor to be able to play that for you. It's also an honor that anytime Sadie wants help writin' a song she comes to me. She's an amazin' young artist and to be able to help her grow her talent is a pleasure." He spoke into the mic.

"Thank you, Deacon. You make it easy. Having a mentor like him to look out for me and help me tell my truth through my songs is an amazing thing." She added.

"We're gonna take a little break now, but we will be back soon." He got down off the stage and walked over to where Rayna sat.

"Wow, that's all I can say." Rayna told them.

"How'd it feel, Little Sister?" Deacon asked.

"That felt incredible. Thank you for writing that with me. It would have never come out the way I wanted it to had I written it on my own." Sadie thanked him again.

"Country music is just three chords and the truth. You keep that in mind and it's easy." Deacon advised her.

"That's how Deacon and I have written all of our songs from the heart. He's a pretty great writing partner." Rayna agreed with her husband.

"You are both great and I couldn't ask for better friends." Sadie told them.

"Deacon has adopted you as his little sister you're family now. You are stuck with us for life. We don't give up on family." Rayna put her hand on top of hers.

"While you two have your chick flick I'm goin' to get drinks." Deacon went to the bar and got them drinks.

"That man does not deal with emotions well." Sadie commented.

"I know, but what he doesn't deal with comes out perfect in song." Rayna laughed.

" _She got her daddy's tongue and temper sometimes her mouth could use a filter. God shook his head the day he built oh, but I bet he smiled. She loves and lives her life unruly tears up that dirt road in a duelly dangerous absolutely and in a little while she'll be roundin' that corner on three wheels ain't slowin' down. Yellin' come on jump in always up to somethin' crazy got nothin' on her. She ain't right, she ain't right, she ain't right, but she's just right for me."_ Deacon took the stage again and he was signing a song that he had predictably written about Rayna.

Rayna looked up at him from the audience and smiled.

" _She says she wants to meet my momma I said I don't think you oughta by like mixin' oil and water, but by midnight she had momma on the coffee table dancin' comin' unwound. Good God I swear can't take her anywhere. What's the girl gonna do next? She ain't right, she ain't right, she ain't right, but she's just right for me."_ The only two people who had heard this song before now were Little Deacon and Jaymes. He tried out his new material on them since they were a captive audience.

" _Every once in a while she gives me that smile and says I just can't see somebody like you lovin' somebody like me. She ain't right, no she ain't right, she ain't right. She ain't right, she ain't right, but she's just right she's just right, she's just right for me. Mmm, she's just right, she's just right, she ain't right, but she's just right for me."_ He finished.

"Thank ya'll so much for lettin' me play for you tonight. It's good to be back out in the land of the livin' where I don't have to worry 'bout bein' spit up on all the time." He laughed and got down from the stage.

"Deacon, I don't even know what to say about that song." Rayna wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You should know by now that most of my songs are about you." Deacon kissed her. His eyes flicked over to the door and he stepped in front of her protectively.

"Deacon?" She questioned. She got her answer when Beverly walked over to them with a man in his sixties.

"Bev, why in God's name would you bring him here?" Deacon clenched his jaw and his fists.

"Because, baby brother, he's changed. I don't know why it's so hard for you to believe. You changed your ways." Beverly told him.

"I also told you that I didn't want anythin' to do with him." Deacon took a deep breath.

"Son, I need your help and I know I ain't got no right to ask for it. Ain't you gonna introduce your daddy to your wife?" Paul Claybourne was the future that Deacon had to look forward to if he'd continued to drink. He had a red veiny nose and his eyes were bloodshot. He had a sizable gut due in part to his failing liver. But in the face despite the wrinkles Deacon was the spitting image of his father.

"I'm not your damn son, Paul, don't talk to her. Don't even look at her. What I need is for you to get out of here. You changed too little too late for me to even think 'bout givin' a damn. You can just turn around and go back the way you came. You'll be rottin' in hell soon enough." Deacon turned his back on him and gathered up his gear. "Come on, Ray, let's get out of here." He held out his hand to his wife.

Rayna took his hand, but she also took the truck keys from him. "I'll drive, babe."

He loaded up his gear in the truck and got in the passenger side. "Babe, I hate to ask this, but can you drop me off at a meeting and I'll just catch a cab home?"

"The one at the church or the one over by Sound Check?" She didn't hesitate.

"The one at the church. I'll try not to be too long." He kissed her cheek when he got out of the truck.

"I'll see you in a little while. And, babe, I'm so proud of you right now." She smiled at him before she drove away.

* * *

Deacon sat in a bar with a glass of whiskey in front of him. He had no intentions of drinking it, but he just wanted to look at it. Except for him and the bartender there wasn't another soul in the bar. He should have done the wise thing and gone to his meeting, but he'd had second thoughts and decided to come here instead. He craned his neck to look over his shoulder when he heard the click clack of heels on the barroom floor.

"I might've known that she'd send you lookin' for me." He sighed.

"She was worried and rightfully so from the looks of it." Tandy took a seat next to him.

"She just left me maybe a half hour ago. How'd she know?" He didn't really have to ask that question she knew him better than he knew himself.

"She said that you had that look in your eyes and that maybe you needed to talk to someone who wasn't her or another alcoholic." She reached for the drink in front of him. "How fresh is that?"

"I just ordered it. And for the record I was never gonna drink it. I just wanted to know that it could sit in front of me and I would have no desire to touch it." He explained himself.

"I know that. I haven't always liked you, but I do know that you wouldn't intentionally do anything to hurt my sister ever again. Not only would you not do that to her you wouldn't do it to your kids. That'd make you too much like the man you hate." She looked him in the eye and downed his drink.

Deacon signaled to the bartender. "Give me another of those and a sweet tea." The bartender nodded and got the drinks. "You're right I do hate him. I don't really trust myself to behave like a rational person around him and that's why I had to get out of there so fast. I've changed, but I'd still gladly kill him if given the chance."

"I know all about hating your father and wanting to do the thing that you know will hurt him the most." She could empathize there. She took a sip of her drink. "You certainly have expensive taste in whiskey."

"Yeah, if I hadn't quit I would've died drunk and broke. I don't think you quite understand. I'm not jokin' when I say I'd kill him." He locked eyes with her.

"What do you mean?" She finished off that drink and ordered another. This was gonna be a long talk.

"The day I left Mississippi I wasn't just runnin' from my family. I was more or less runnin' from the law. My daddy stumbled in drunk to my graduation and he stumbled out before they called my name. It was probably around midnight when he made it home from the bar. We got into one hell of a fight, but I put him on his ass. He didn't like it that I got the better of him and he pulled a gun on me. I wrestled the gun away from him and when I did it went off. It barely grazed his arm, but that was enough. My momma called my grandpa to hide me out just in case Paul was lucid enough to know what happened. Thankfully he wasn't. Pawpaw brought me back home around five that mornin'. He told me to get in my truck, drive away, and never look back. Before he left me to pack he shoved a wad of hundred dollar bills in my hand and sent me on my way." The memory left him raw like it had just happened rather than being so long ago. He took a sip of his tea while he waited for Tandy's reaction.

"Deacon, you did what you had to. It was him or you. From the little things that Rayna has said over the years you didn't do anything that he didn't deserve." She downed her drink and held up her finger for another. "In a way I do know where you're coming from. I was so damn mad at daddy after he promoted someone over me that I let the feds talk me into testifying against him. I gave them the evidence they needed to arrest him. The only reason they had to release him was because I said I obtained some of that evidence illegally. I couldn't go through with it. I know he thinks Teddy did it, but it was me."

"Damn, Tandy, I didn't know you had that in you." Deacon raised his glass to her in salute.

"Neither did I and it didn't particularly feel that great either." She drained this drink as quickly as she had the others. "Come on, drive me back to your place." She held out her keys to him.

He took the keys and laid some money on the bar. "You ok to walk?" He offered her his arm.

She took his arm. "Don't think that this means I like you now. I just don't dislike you anymore."

"Whatever you say." He agreed as he helped her into the car. They could both feel the frostiness that had always been between them thaw and melt though.

"You ok?" Rayna asked when they walked into the house.

"I'm fine, your sister is drunk, but I'm ok." He kissed her softly. "Thank you for knowin' what I needed."

"You're welcome, babe. I will always save you." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Tandy, you alright?"

"I'm fine," Tandy stumbled to the couch and sat down. She tried like hell to type out a message on her phone. "I'm trying to get that good for nothing boyfriend of mine to come pick me up. I just can't see to send him this text."

Rayna took the phone from her. "You realize that you just called him your boyfriend, right? I told you to go keep Deacon company not get drunk."

"Because he is my boyfriend. I actually envy you. I want what you have with that screw up." Tandy pointed to Deacon who had just picked one of the twins up.

"The thing that we have is pretty great." Rayna smiled.

"Shh, Bubba, you're ok. Daddy's got you. I know I left you all alone with Aunt Tandy and I'm sorry." Deacon cooed at the baby.

"Rayna, don't let this go to your head, but I approve of him." Tandy said.

"Yeah, I do too." Rayna smiled at her husband. "Bucky is on his way to get you. Do me a favor and stop treating him like your dirty secret. He's a good guy and you could do a lot worse than him."

"I know, don't lecture me while the room is spinning. Your husband likes the good stuff and it gets you drunk pretty quick." Tandy grabbed her forehead.

"Babe, what did you do to my sister?" Rayna laughed.

"I didn't do anythin' to her. She walked in and started downing doubles like they were water." Deacon defended himself. "Come on, Deac, let's go get you and that brother of yours a bottle." He carried the baby into the kitchen.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I really hope you guys are enjoying this and having as much fun with this as I am. Until next time please review.


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is There'll be Peace in the Valley by Elvis.

* * *

Chapter 21

"Alright, are we all ready for this?" Bucky asked. All the artists of Highway 65 were gathered at a studio for a photo shoot.

"We're ready for this, Buck." Rayna fixed her earring and adjusted her low cut top.

"Are we sure that we are ok with what Deacon is wearing?" Bucky questioned.

"Buck, don't go there. It was a fight to get him not to wear his flannel." Rayna begged him.

Deacon wore a black button up shirt under a black vest with his jeans and boots. "Hey, we have gotten lucky that Jayme hasn't gotten me with one of his geysers yet. If we don't get this over with soon he still might." He looked over to where Tandy was keeping an eye on the boys.

"Deacon, for God's sake don't worry about them I've got them." Tandy assured him.

"Ray, how do you wanna do this? Group pictures first or individuals?" Bucky asked.

"Let's do group pictures first and then we will handle individuals." Rayna said after thinking it over.

"Alright, come on everyone, let's get this over with." Bucky rounded everyone up.

"Deacon, stop acting like you hate every minute of this and act like you like me." Rayna hissed at him through her teeth.

"I don't just like you I love you, but we have been at this for awhile, babe." Deacon replied. He leaned his forehead against hers and stared into her eyes.

"I love you too." She brought her hand up and rested it against his cheek.

"That was perfect. You guys are done." The photographer called out to them. Neither of them had realized that he was taking the picture and he had caught them in their natural state.

"Thank God," Deacon took her hand and laced their fingers together.

"It wasn't as bad as you're making it out to be." She laughed at him.

"Hey, Ray, that was great. Those are really gonna look good on the website. As soon as I get the proofs I'll send them to you for final approval. Also Luke messengered Will's contract over and I have it for you when you want it." Bucky reported.

"Buck, I'm on maternity leave for two more weeks. I still have to head over to the Opry and see how things are going for that concert tomorrow night. After that I won't be back in the office until I'm off maternity leave. And did you take care of what I asked you to take care of?" She reminded him.

"I know, but it's just better to get that out of the way. Yeah, I handled it." He assured her.

"Did you look over the contract? What do you think of it?" She asked. Deacon broke away from them and went to tend to his sons while they talked business.

"I looked it over and it seems very straightforward nothing in there to be worried about." He took it out and showed it to her.

"Bring it by the house later and I'll sign it then you can give it to Will to sign." She sighed.

"Alright, I can handle that." Bucky replied.

She walked over to where Deacon was fussing over the boys.

"Come on, Jayme, burp for daddy. You're not gonna be a happy camper if you don't." He had Jaymes laying over his shoulder on a burp rag.

"How are they doin'?" Rayna asked.

"They just had a bottle and the king here is refusing to burp for me." He reported.

"Give him here, sometimes it just takes the one of us who hasn't tried yet you know that." She put the burp rag over her shoulder and took Jaymes from him. She patted his back gently and he burped for her without a problem. "That's momma's good boy."

"You want us to go over to the Opry with you?" He asked.

"No, you go ahead and take them on home and I will meet you there later." She kissed him and handed the baby back to him.

* * *

" _But don't say it's over I'm gonna fix what I've done gonna lay down beside you gonna lay down my gun. The struggle ain't over but I hope you will stay 'cause I'm quittin' at the end of the day. I'll be quittin' at the end of the day. Yeah, I'm quittin' at the end of the day."_ Maddie and JC finished the run through they had done of one of Rayna and Deacon's songs.

"Wow, you guys, I'm impressed as hell." Deacon said from the doorway of the music room.

"Dad, I didn't know that you were home yet. Daphne is doing her homework. Mine is already done. JC just came over to work on some songs. We were really just playing around." Maddie explained quickly.

"I had nothin' better to do and Maddie invited me over to write I hope that's ok." JC added.

"Relax, it's fine. I thought that sounded pretty damn good. I'm partial to the original myself, but for a couple baby artists that wasn't bad at all." Deacon grinned at them.

"This is what we resorted to because writin' wasn't gettin' us anywhere." JC sighed.

"Yeah, we gave it a try and we missed big time." She chimed in.

"I'm gonna tell you two what I tell every country song writer. I just told Sadie this not long ago. Writing country songs is nothin' more than three chords and the truth. That song ya'll were just singin' was written on a tour bus after Ray had bailed Vince and me outta jail in San Antonio for gettin' in a bar fight. Obviously not all of those lyrics are true, but all great country songs tell a story." Deacon coached them.

"You and my daddy did your share of hell raisin' didn't you?" JC asked.

"We did I guess it's safe to say that comin' from Vince and me you and Maddie come from a long line of losers." Deacon shook his head.

"But you finally got it right, dad." Maddie reminded him.

"I did, 'cause I had your momma to set me straight." Deacon smiled. One of the boys cried out from the other room. "I'm gonna leave you two to the writin' my duty calls." He left them to go tend to the twins. He was still in the living room with the boys when Rayna came in a little while later.

"Hey, babe, did they give you any problems?" Rayna leaned over the back of the couch and kissed him.

"Nope, not at all they were angels as always. I checked on Daphne and she's doin' homework up in her room. How were things at the Opry?" He asked her.

"They were good. Things are just about ready for tomorrow night." She was a little puzzled that he hadn't mentioned Maddie, but she let it go.

"Ray, I have somethin' I want you to listen to. Just listen to it all the way through before you say anythin'." He pulled out his phone and played the song that he'd walked in on Maddie and JC singing. He'd recorded it on his phone. He'd been standing there longer than they'd realized.

"Oh my God, is that Maddie? And who is that singing with her?" She asked after she'd listened to it all the way through.

"That's Maddie and JC. I was blown away when I walked in here and heard that. She's ready, babe. We are here to protect her, but she's ready." He confirmed.

"You're right, we do this now where we can control it and protect her. We can't fight it or she will become just as rebellious as I was and we can't lose her, Deacon. I'll say this no one else ever needs to cover that song again. That was absolutely incredible." She agreed with him.

"What do we think of him?" He asked.

"I think he's a very gifted musician. I want hear something that's his though. He definitely made your part of that song his own, but he's got a story to tell. You can hear it trying to break through. I have an idea just give me some time to talk it over with Bucky and Tandy before I bring you in on this. That was a good catch, babe." She praised him.

"Thanks, Ray, I got lucky that I walked in when I did that's all. Babe, you talk over whatever you need to talk over with Bucky and Tandy. As the talent scout I did my job." He smiled at her.

"Deacon, baby, love of my life, didn't it concern you at all that our hormonal teenage daughter was alone in the house with a hormonal teenage boy?" She asked him after giving it some thought.

"Daphne was here with 'em and I don't think it's like that with them. They are just friends that's all." He replied. He didn't see what she was getting at.

"When we were their ages what were we doing together?" She tried a different approach with him.

His face paled and he gulped. "Well, you were sneaking me into Lamar's house until he kicked you out and we sure as hell weren't just writing songs together. After that we pretty much lived together."

"So then, we agree there need to be rules for there being boys in the house when we aren't here?" She scrunched her face up.

"Yeah, we need to have rules." He agreed.

"That's what I thought. Now give me one of those boys I haven't got to snuggle them all day. Bucky will be here soon to drop somethin' off for me. Tandy will be with him obviously and I can run my idea by them then." She took Little Deacon into her arms.

"They were right there with us and I missed 'em too. I kinda like havin' them right there with us at work though." He cuddled Jaymes to his chest.

"I like that too. I could get used to that in a hurry." She agreed with him.

"Hey, little men, how are you doing? Uncle Bucky didn't get to talk to you earlier he was working." Bucky waved at the boys when he came in.

"Nope, I had them all to myself earlier." Tandy said from behind him.

"Buck, you're welcome to hold 'em." Deacon offered.

"Here are those papers, Ray. Take a look at those while I say hello to these guys." Bucky handed her the contract and kneeled down in front of Little Deacon and Jaymes who were in their swings. "You have to be Jayme look at that big smile on your face because someone is talking to you." He picked Jaymes up.

"How'd you know?" Tandy asked him.

"I got down in their line of sight and he started smiling. Deac is as antisocial as Big Deacon. Look at how he's brooding. I never thought I'd say it looks cute." Bucky replied. He'd been as crazy about the girls as he was the boys. But, Rayna was family to him.

"Bubba, tell Uncle Bucky it's not nice to pick on you." Deacon told his son.

"Deacon, it's not picking on him if it's true. Deac does brood like you and Maddie do." Tandy backed Bucky up.

Rayna scrawled her signature across the bottom of the contract. "Speaking of Maddie there is something that you need to hear. And you need to hear it live. Deacon, have them come in here."

"Hey, Maddie, JC, come on in here a minute and bring your guitars with you." Deacon called out to the teens.

Tandy arched her eyebrow and looked at her sister when the pair walked into the room together.

Rayna shook her head and rolled her eyes as if to say I'll tell you later.

"What did you need, dad?" Maddie asked.

"I was hopin' that you would play for them what you played for me earlier." Deacon told her.

"Yeah, we can do that." JC agreed. "Ready?"

"Ready," Maddie nodded at him and they both started to play. _"Quittin' the bottle at the end of the day want to be there for heaven let it open the gate. I'll give up the lyin' if you're gonna stay. I'll be quittin' at the end of the day."_

Rayna watched her daughter with pride in her eyes.

" _But don't say it's over I'm gonna change what I've done gonna lay down beside you gonna lay down my gun. The struggle ain't over but I hope you will stay cause I'm quittin' at the end of the day."_ Their voices melded together perfectly.

" _Done with the cheatin' that drove you away, but you'll give me forgiveness if I promise to change. I told you it's over so what else can I say. I'll be quittin' at the end of the day."_ Maddie really made the song her own.

JC cast a glance over at his duet partner as he played. _"But don't say it's over I'm gonna fix what I've done gonna lay down beside you gonna lay down my gun. The struggle ain't over but I hope you will stay. Cause I'm quittin' at the end of the day."_ Maddie locked eyes with him as they sang.

" _Hold on a couple more hours I'll be home ready to lay in your arms don't change your mind."_ They didn't even notice that they moved closer to each other as the song progressed.

Rayna sent Deacon a look that said see what I mean?

Deacon nodded his head he could see her point.

" _But don't say it's over I'm gonna fix what I've done gonna lay down beside you gonna lay down my gun. The struggle ain't over, but I hope you will stay 'cause I'm quittin' at the end of the day. I'll be quittin' at the end of the day. Yeah, I'm quittin' at the end of the day."_ The teens looked away from each other quickly after they'd finished.

"That was some really good guitar work, JC. I liked that extra chord you added in at the bridge." Deacon praised him.

"That was just 'bout the most intimidatin' thing I've ever done in my life. The extra chord was for that extra long note that we held." JC laughed nervously.

"I don't have words for how good ya'll sounded. It takes a lot of courage to do an artist's song in front of them like that. I'm just really impressed." Rayna told them.

"Thank you," JC looked down and blushed.

"Thanks, mom," Maddie smiled. All she really wanted to do was please her mother and make her see that she was mature enough to handle this.

"Ya'll go back in the music room and have fun. I just wanted them to hear that." Deacon winked at them.

"Come on, JC, let's go." Maddie said.

"I'm with you." JC followed her back into the music room.

"Ray, I know how you feel about signing the girls, but you need to sign him before another label figures out how good he is." Bucky advised her.

"There was a reason I wanted you to hear that. There is something that I wanted to run by you and Tandy. I was thinking of doing something like an apprenticeship contract for the girls and for JC. Because I agree he's good, but he could be great." Rayna replied.

"I would have to iron out the details with you, but that sounds like a great idea to me." Tandy agreed with her sister's course of action.

"Lock him down, Ray, whatever way you think is best, but he's a young Deacon meets Will Lexington and we want him. I know that it's about what you want to say with our brand, but he can do that and make us money." Bucky pleaded with her.

"Buck, we are gonna make a statement with the brand and make money it's ok." Rayna assured him.

* * *

"Wow, what is this? The Conrad Sister's new sound?" Rayna walked into Maddie's room and found Maddie and Daphne having a jam session.

"Yeah," The girls answered her in unison.

"So, you girls know that tomorrow night is the tenth anniversary of my induction into the Opry. I Still remember that night you were just a little bitty thing." She pointed at Maddie. "And I was breastfeeding you backstage." She laughed at the face Daphne made.

"Mom, that's gross." Daphne complained.

"You're the one that sits in the same room as her while she nurses the twins. I don't see why you think it's gross." Maddie pretty much refused to be in the same room as her mother when she was nursing the boys.

"It's a natural part of life, Maddie, you'll get used to it. Anyway my point is the Opry was my family long before either of you were thought of and I thought it would be nice if ya'll would join me and sorta bring it full circle." Rayna smiled.

"What? Seriously? Like join you on stage?" Maddie asked excitedly.

"Yes, I want you two to make your Opry debut I think you're ready." Rayna confirmed.

"Oh my God, this is so exciting I have to go call everyone I know." Daphne rattled and rushed off to grab her phone.

"That is so awesome, mom." Maddie was ecstatic.

"Maddie, while your sister is busy you and I need to have a talk about boys in the house. Dad and I we want to trust you we really do. So, if you want to have boys in the house while we're not here there are rules. Rule one no boys on the second floor. Rule two Daphne has to be in the house two. Rule three let us know that he's gonna be here. I think that those are all reasonable rules." Rayna leveled with her.

"Ok, I can agree to that. I promise that there is nothing going on with me and JC though." Maddie didn't put up a fight surprisingly.

"Sweetie, I know that I really do, but you don't have the best track record." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"I promise to follow the rules if you and dad both promise to try and trust me." Maddie bargained.

"You have a deal." Rayna was willing to work with her if she could be respectful.

* * *

Deacon had both the boys' tubs in the tub in his and Rayna's bathroom. "Alright, let's get you two stinky boys bathed. Momma frowns upon it when you both smell like a foot." He stripped them both out of their onesies and diapers.

"I'm not too late for bath time am I?" Rayna asked from the doorway.

"You are right on time. I just got them naked." He lifted one boy into the tub and then the other.

"You two are so handsome just like your daddy." She kneeled in the floor beside him.

"They are even good lookin' naked." He grinned. He grabbed a washrag and the baby soap.

"They get that from their daddy too." She kissed his neck quickly.

"Ray, I'm a time bomb waitin' to go off. Don't tease me." He warned her. His eyes darkened with lust. He started washing the boys to distract himself.

"The doctor cleared me for sex." She whispered in his ear.

He turned to look at her. "Really?"

"Really, I was thinking that tomorrow night after the thing at the Opry we could leave the boys for a couple of hours and head up to the cabin for some momma and daddy alone time." She suggested to him.

"That's a damn good idea. Who is gonna watch the little bits?" He asked.

"Your momma is comin' in town for the show and she would love to spend some time with her grandkids." She nuzzled his neck.

"You just thought of everythin'." He chuckled.

"That's what you keep me around for, babe." She grinned. "Now, let's get these two boys cleaned up."

"Hurry up with those pajamas, daddy, these two little frogs are getting cold." She was sitting on the bed with both the boys wrapped up in towels. She ran a soft brush through both of their dark hair. They really did look just like Deacon.

"Here I am." He walked in carrying two sets of pajamas. He handed a set to her and he put the other on Little Deacon. "There you go, you're not cold anymore all dressed and warm." He kissed his cheek and was rewarded with a big smile.

"Look at your brother, Jayme, he doesn't smile like that for anyone but daddy. You're both crazy about daddy, but I think he's worse than you are." She dressed Jaymes. He looked at her and yawned. "Goodness, that was a big yawn for such a little boy. Ask daddy if he's ready for night-night song."

"Daddy is ready for night-night song and so are the boys." He laid the baby in one of the bassinets that were in their room.

She laid Jaymes in the other.

He grabbed his guitar and started picking out a tune.

" _Oh well I'm tired and so weary but I must go along 'til the lord comes and calls, calls me away. Well morning's so bright and the lamb is the light and the night, night is as black as the sea oh yes."_ Rayna sang softly.

" _There will be peace in the valley for me someday. There will be peace in the valley for me oh lord I pray. There'll be no sadness no sorrow no trouble, trouble I've seen. There will be peace in the valley for me."_ They sang together. As usual the boys were out by the time they finished the first chorus.

"I love doing this with you every night." She wrapped her arms around him.

"I love it too. Momma sang that song to me and Bev every night unless she was battlin' with Paul." He kissed her softly.

"I remember you singin' Maddie to sleep on the bus to that song when you would keep an eye on her for me. She demanded it even when she wasn't on the road with us." She smiled.

"Momma was an Elvis fan if you can't tell." He laughed.

"I think I got the hint when you named our dog Elvis." She winked.

"Hey, I will have you know that that's my dog. We weren't together when I got him." He protested.

"We were so together when you bought that dog. We just weren't sleeping together and I was engaged to another man." She buried her face in his chest.

He ran his hands up and down her back. "If you are gonna count like that then we were together when you accepted his proposal."

"I'll compromise we were officially back together the night I picked you up at the hospital. If that doesn't work for you then we were back together the night I bought out your contract from him." She leaned up and kissed him.

"I will agree with the night that you picked me up at the hospital. That was the night you let me know that you wanted me to fight for you." He agreed to her compromise.

"I love it when you give me my way." She chuckled in her throat.

"I only do it because I know how giving you can be when you're happy." He pulled her flush against him.

"You are such a man." She shook her head. "I talked to Maddie."

"How'd that go?" He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her down in his lap.

"It went surprisingly well. She agreed to all of the rules and she didn't put up a fight. It makes me wonder who she is and what she did with our sullen, moody daughter." She laid her head on his shoulder.

"She's been a lot better since we have been goin' out for regular drivin' lessons and since I showed her that baby book. She's been more hands on with the boys and her attitude has improved. I'm really proud of the young woman she's becomin', Ray." His chest puffed up with pride.

"I think you have had a lot to do with her change in attitude. She's been more respectful and happier. Keep up the good work, daddy. I think you understand her in a way that I can't you two are so similar." She just loved the life that they had built together.

"I make her talk. I don't let her be a little me." He kissed her shoulder.

"I'll tell you what her and JC together remind me of us at that age. They are a natural fit together. I don't think that there is anything going on between them that we have to worry about though." She stifled a yawn.

"I don't think so either and they remind me of us too. They sang that song and it didn't sound like a cover it sounded like they took it and made it their own. If I had him for a little while he I could turn him into a guitarist instead of just a guitar player." He mused.

"You're gonna need a band for when you start playing gigs at places other than the Bluebird you should take him under your wing. If I haven't told you lately I love what you've done with Sadie. You've really helped her reach her potential." She yawned again.

"That's enough shop talk for one night. Baby, you're so tired you're barely keepin' your eyes open. We've had a big day today and we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow. Let's crawl in bed and get some sleep before the little Outlaw and the little Rebel wake up to be fed." He moved her off his lap and pulled back the covers.

She crawled under them without any hesitation. "Which one is the outlaw and which one is the rebel?"

"Deac is the outlaw and Jayme is the rebel. I love you, baby." He got into bed and took her into his arms.

"I love you too, babe." She tangled her feet up with his and closed her eyes.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I'm on a roll so you're getting two chapters in one day. Until next time please review.


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is The man I want to Be by Chris Young.

* * *

Chapter 22

"Thanks for meetin' me here, Buck. I wasn't sure that you would show up." Luke picked up his coffee cup took a sip.

"Truthfully I wasn't sure that I should come, but I have that signed contract for you so I needed to see you anyway." Bucky replied.

"The reason I called is I wanna run somethin' by you. Maddie invited Colt to Rayna's Opry thing tonight and I was wonderin' if it would be weird if I came too." Luke told him.

"That's up to you. I know that it would go a long way to helping both your images." Bucky sipped his coffee.

"I might as well this is a small town we can't avoid each other forever." Luke shrugged his shoulders.

"Exactly, it'll be fine and if you behave yourself Deacon will behave." Bucky agreed with him.

"I'll behave I just wasn't exactly in my right mind that day. I behaved pretty rotten and I can admit to that. Love makes you do stupid things. I'll tell you what I saw the twins' pictures in the country edition of People and any doubts I may have had about them maybe bein' mine were erased they look just like him." Luke stroked his beard.

"They do look exactly like him." Bucky agreed. "So anyway that contract is all squared away."

"Good, I look forward to going out on tour with Will again. Rayna pulled off the coup of the century when she got him. Hell, she pulled off a pretty awesome feat when she got Jeff fired. She built Edgehill up and she brought it down." Luke chuckled dryly.

"That she did." Bucky laughed uncomfortably.

* * *

"JC, do you mind if I come in?" Gunnar stood on the front porch of Scarlett's place with his hands in his back pockets.

"Come on in, Gunnar. I'm just workin' on breakfast you're welcome to come join us." JC opened the door wider and allowed the older man to enter. He was once again shirtless.

"Well, hey, Gunnar, I didn't expect to see you here this early." Scarlett smiled at him.

"I just thought that I would stop by for a little while. We can work on writing or something if you want." Gunnar suggested.

"That would be nice." She was tired of things feeling so off kilter between them. If he couldn't make a move and make his intentions known, maybe she would just have to be the one to do it.

"JC, do you not own a shirt? Every time I come over here you're shirtless." Gunnar made a joke out of it.

"I do own a shirt, but I work out every morning and I do that shirtless." JC explained from the stove.

"JC, don't listen to him he's just jealous because he doesn't look that good without a shirt on." Scarlett pushed Gunnar's shoulder playfully.

"If you two are gonna gang up on me I'm just gonna go back to my place where my roommate actually knows what a shirt is for." Gunnar crossed his arms over his chest.

"Stay awhile I'm not gonna be here long. I have to head over to the Opry in a little bit. Deacon wants me to play with the band tonight." JC replied. He grabbed his phone when it buzzed. "Or now guess I didn't need to eat anyway. Everything is done I'm just gonna grab a shirt and get out of your hair." He took the food off the stove. He went back to his room to get a shirt and his guitar.

"See you, tonight." Scarlett waved at him.

"Yeah, see you later." JC waved over his shoulder.

"Alone again," Gunnar chuckled nervously.

"Gunnar, stop makin' things awkward." She told him bluntly.

"I'm not making things awkward at least I'm not doing it purposely. I mean we had sex, Scarlett, and then we kinda spent the next couple of weeks living on the same bus barely speaking." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Jesus, Gunnar, I'm waitin' on you to decide what you want. I'm not just gonna continue to sleep with you and leave things in limbo. Like I told you that night I don't know what you want unless you say it and until you do I don't think it'll be real for you." She replied.

"I don't know what I want either. I want you, but you broke my heart. I asked you to marry me and you turned me down. What else was I supposed to do?" He was at a loss for words.

"Maybe I wanted you to ask me for the right reason and not because you were hurting over Jason's death. Maybe I waited for you to get your act together and tell me that you still love me and want to be with me. Instead you took up with my best friend. I can't wait on your forever. I'm not Deacon I don't have that kind of patience." She rubbed her temples.

"You waited for me?" That was pretty much the only thing that he had gotten out of the conversation.

"Yes, I waited for you and I'm not gonna wait much longer. So either decide what you want or let me go." She stared him down.

"I don't know what to say." He admitted with a clueless look on his face.

"Let's just get through some songs today and then get ready to go to Rayna's thing tonight." She shook her head in disgust.

"Yeah, sure, I can do that." He agreed.

* * *

"JC, thanks for gettin' over here so quickly." Deacon was on stage at the Opry running over things for the night with the band.

"You said that you needed me here and I came runnin'." JC took his guitar out of the case and sat it on a stand.

"Tonight is a pretty big night for Ray as you know. It's also a pretty big night for you. Most of the original band is comin' back for this, but I need you at backup guitarist. That's a huge job you take over my duties as bandleader on our duets. The rest of the band is gonna take their cues from you. You prove to me that you can handle this and you'll be my bandleader." Deacon leveled with him.

"I don't know what to say I'm honored." JC grinned like a fool.

"You don't have to say anythin'. Let's go over the set list and get you squared away. We can run through all the numbers a couple of times with the guys and make sure that you have it down cold." Deacon clapped him on the back.

"So, does that mean you want me followin' your lead on Maddie and Daphne's number too?" JC asked him.

"Yeah, you'll follow me on that one. I'm gonna be on stage with them this is their first time and I wanna make sure everythin' goes smoothly." Deacon confirmed. "Come on, guys, circle up and let's knock this out before sound check." He called the band together.

"Ya'll are sounding good." Rayna walked in two hours later pushing the boys in their stroller.

"Hey, what are you doin' here? You're still supposed to be at home." Deacon walked over to where she stood and kissed her.

"We aren't used to being home just the three of us and we really missed daddy this morning." Rayna smiled at him.

Deacon leaned down and kissed both the boys. "Daddy missed you too. How are my guys today? I haven't seen you since bottle time this morning. Were you good for momma?"

"They are the easy ones. We took a long nap in front of the TV after you left and we called for a limo to pick grandma up from the airport. We also discovered that they both love Johnny Cash as much as their daddy does." She gave him a report of their morning.

"I'm sure that grandma is gonna love bein' picked up by a limo. Those are my boys of course they love Johnny. I'm glad ya'll got a nap in I know that Mr. Jayme had a tummy ache last night and he kept daddy awake." He tickled their bellies.

"I know he did. Deac very much appreciated getting to nurse alone with momma all night. He likes having space to eat without his brother crowding him." She laughed.

"The little piglet likes to eat comfortably." He threw his arm around her shoulders. "What do you say we go grab some lunch together? They can handle things without me. I wanna spend some time with my wife and sons this afternoon."

"That sounds perfect, babe. I lost all my baby weight and that means I can actually eat food that tastes good again." She put her arm around his waist.

"JC, ya'll take an hour for lunch and if I'm not back by then keep practicing without me." He called out to the young man.

"Sure thing, Deacon." JC replied.

"You didn't tell him did you?" Rayna asked as they walked out.

"No, he thinks he's playin' second chair to me. He has all the songs down. There is no reason for me to be anythin' other than your duet partner tonight." He kissed her cheek.

"Where to for lunch, babe?" She loved that since the media circus had died down with everything she could go out in public again without being hounded.

"Today is your day I thought I'd let you pick." He was fine with whatever she wanted.

"Let's go to that pizza place right around the corner." She suggested.

"That's fine with me. I can't believe you're not sick of that place with as much as you had me run out and get it for you when you were pregnant with them." He laughed as they walked along.

"One of those boys has a sweet tooth and one of them really loves salty stuff." She defended.

"So one of them takes after you and the other one takes after me in other words?" He arched his eyebrow.

"Pretty much," She grabbed her phone when it rang. "Hey, Buck, what's going on and can you deal with it?" She spoke into her phone. She listened to what Bucky had to say for a minute and nodded along. "Alright, I will pass that along. I'll see you later." She hung up the phone.

"What kind of crisis came up?" He knew that Bucky had a tendency to overreact sometimes.

"Guess who's single just went platinum?" She smiled at him.

"I don't know, who's?" He asked.

"My extremely talented and sexy husband's." She informed him.

"You're kiddin' me right?" He couldn't believe it.

"Nope, I'm not kidding. Just As I Am went platinum. Bucky just got the confirmation today. I'm so proud of you, babe." She pulled him down for a kiss.

"I couldn't have done it without you. And I wouldn't have wanted to do it without you. For all the shit that we've put each other through we bring out the best in each other." He rubbed his nose against hers.

"And I forgot to mention that Route Three is sitting at number three on the country charts right now. You need to get that album finished up." She let her inner label head come out.

"I'm workin' on it. It's almost done, babe." He assured her.

"We really have something to celebrate tonight." She let her hand wander to his ass.

"Damn right we do, baby." He kissed her wantonly.

* * *

"Wow, I can't believe that I'm playin' back up guitar at the Opry tonight. Never in a million years did I think this would happen for me this soon." JC commented to Maddie. They stood on the stage looking out. The audience hadn't been let in yet.

"I can't believe I'm making my Opry debut tonight." Maddie replied.

"If you get too nervous just look at me I'll be right there on the side of the stage behind Deacon. You won't need me though. I thought I'd mention it just in case you need me." He said.

"Thanks for the support, JC, you're a really great friend." She smiled at him.

"I don't know about all that, but I try my best." He looked down at the floor to hide the fact that he was blushing.

"Maddie, momma is lookin' for you. She wants to show you guys around before it's time to go on." Deacon stepped out on the stage.

"See you out here later." She waved at JC.

"I'll be here." JC waved back.

"Jimmy, I need a quick word with you." Deacon put his hand on the younger man's shoulder.

"Shoot," JC replied.

"I know that I told you that you would be playing back up guitar tonight, but I lied. You're the bandleader tonight. You're ready for this and you are going to do great. When I'm out here all you have to do is follow my lead and when I'm not out here you've got it you know these songs." Deacon told him.

"Thanks for havin' so much faith in me I promise that I won't let you down." JC swore.

"I know you won't or I wouldn't be givin' you this chance." Deacon smiled at him.

"There you are, Maddie, I've been lookin' all over for you." Rayna said when she saw her daughter.

"Sorry, mom, I was out on stage talking to JC." Maddie replied.

"Come on, I wanna show you and Daphne the dressing room while we still have a little time." Rayna waved her over.

Maddie looked over in time to see Colt walk in with Luke. "Hold up a minute, mom, Colt's here." She smiled brightly. "Hey, Colt, you came."

"I wasn't gonna miss this." Colt smiled back.

"Rayna, congratulations this is a big night for you." Luke nodded his head in her direction.

"Thanks for comin', Luke." Rayna gave him a small smile.

"Hey, Ray, where are the boys? I wanna put these wax plugs in their ears before the show starts. Like we used to do for Maddie." Deacon came off the stage not bothering to pay attention to his surroundings.

"They are over there with your momma and my daddy. You still have time." Rayna pointed in the general direction of where their sons were.

"Freakin' Deacon," Luke greeted him.

"Wheels Up," Deacon returned the greeting with a tight smile on his face.

Rayna grabbed his hand and dug her nails into his palm in a signal for him to behave.

"Well, I know you're busy I'll let you get to what you need to. There are some people I'm gonna go talk to." Luke excused himself.

"I'll see you later, Maddie." Colt grinned goofily.

"Yeah, I'll see you later, Colt." Maddie blushed.

"You've gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me, Ray." Deacon whispered in her ear.

Rayna shot him a glare. "Come on, girls, I want to show you something." She put an arm around each of her daughters. "Deacon, behave." She gave him one last warning as she led them off.

"Where are we going, mom?" Daphne questioned.

Rayna led them to a dressing room that said Welcome to the Circle on the door. "This is the dressing room used by all performers the first time that they play the Opry. I thought that we could all share it tonight."

"Mom, this is totally awesome." Maddie gushed. She went over to the vanity were several vases of flowers sat. She read the card that was on a vase of lilies. "To my dreamer always reach for the stars love dad."

"To my sunshine girl you always brighten my day love Deacon." Daphne read the card that was on a vase of daisies.

"Oh, mom, these roses are yours from dad." Maddie snatched the card before Rayna could grab it. "Ray, the best songs don't always come from broken hearts. You're the song in my heart and you always have been. Love your husband."

"That man is so lucky I read that before I did my makeup." Rayna wiped her eyes.

"Mom, why are you crying?" Daphne asked looking confused.

"Hormones, baby girl, one day you will understand." Rayna kissed the top of her head. "Let's see who these carnations are from." She grabbed the card. "To my favorite writing partner break a leg, JC."

"Maddie's got a boyfriend." Daphne teased.

"I do not like him like that he was being nice." Maddie grabbed the card from her mother.

"Why don't you two go see if your dad is here yet?" Rayna suggested.

"Come on Daph, let's go." Maddie took her sister by the hand.

"God help me, she does like him like that and she doesn't know it." Rayna groaned. The girl had taken after her and fallen for a guitar player.

* * *

"Ten years at the Opry it's hard to believe that it has been that long. It's like being a part of a big extended family only this family understands you and you don't have the urge to kill them. With that in mind I couldn't think of a more perfect time to do this. Tonight I'm honored to welcome to the stage making their Opry debut my daughters Maddie and Daphne Conrad accompanied by my husband Deacon Claybourne on the guitar." Rayna opened her concert.

Maddie and Daphne walked out on the stage with Deacon bringing up the rear.

"I can't believe how grown up they look out there." Tandy commented to her sister from backstage.

"I know; it seems like just yesterday that they were the boys' age." Rayna agreed. "Scarlett, do you know if your uncle got those earplugs in the boys' ears?" She turned to the younger woman.

"He got 'em in. Jayme screamed like he was killin' him." Scarlett assured her.

"Sounds about right," Rayna looked over to where June and Lamar stood each of them holding one of the boys. She watched her daughters sing with tears of pride in her eyes.

Deacon took his guitar off as soon as they came off the stage and he pulled the girls into a hug. "You both did great."

"I'm so proud of you both." Rayna hugged them both next.

"Maddie, that was awesome." Colt still had the goofy smile on his face.

"Thanks, Colt." Maddie smiled shyly.

"Scarlett, I may trade you in for these two." Gunnar joked.

"Go on, they can have you it'd make my life easier." Scarlett quipped. Things were still up in the air between them.

"You two are so grown up now." Lamar hugged his granddaughters.

"My girls, you were so good." June told them. She made no difference between Maddie and Daphne.

"Sing with me, babe?" Rayna asked Deacon.

"Always, you didn't even have to ask." Deacon put his guitar strap back around his neck and waited at the side of the stage.

"That was really special for me to be able to introduce my girls that way. Of all the memories I have of playing here I will cherish that one. There's one person in particular that I wouldn't be here without. Let me welcome back to the stage Deacon Claybourne." Rayna spoke to the audience.

Deacon walked out on stage and waved. He stood next to Rayna so that they were sharing the same mic and he began to play once the applause died down.

" _The rivers between us are deep and dark as the secrets we keep. We stand on the shores time running by at our feet oh the rivers between us are deep."_ Rayna and Deacon stared deeply into each other's eyes as they sang. It was like the rest of the world went away and they were the only two people that existed.

Gunnar felt something inside him stir as he listened to the words of the song and he slipped his hand into Scarlett's.

" _Our love is like the moon rising too fast and fading too soon. This night will soon be gone help me hold on."_

"Scarlett, I don't know much, but I know that I don't wanna live another second without being with you." Gunnar whispered in her ear.

Scarlett squeezed his hand and smiled at him. "That's what I've been waitin' on you to say."

" _There are kingdoms to keep us apart so we live out our lives in the dark. Love has a way of making you pay with your heart. There are kingdoms to keep us apart."_

Luke wasn't as ready to see them together as he'd thought he was. He stood off alone looking downcast.

Colt looked over and caught sight of his dad. "I'll be right back." He told Maddie.

"Ok," Maddie looked at him confused.

"This must really suck, huh, dad?" Colt asked his father.

"That it does." Luke agreed.

" _Our love is like the moon rising too fast and fading too soon. This night will soon be gone help me hold on."_ They were so close that their lips were almost touching.

" _Help me hold on."_ Deacon sang soulfully never once taking his eyes off his wife. "Now, Ray, I know that this is your big night, so I have a surprise for you. You just sit right there." He sat her on a stool.

"Deacon, what are you up to?" She couldn't help smiling.

"I wrote you a song." He started playing. _"God I'm down here on my knees 'cause it's the last place left to fall beggin' for another chance if there's any chance at all that you might still be listenin' lovin' and forgivin' guys like me. I've spent my whole life gettin' it all wrong and I sure could use your help 'cause from now on. I wanna be a good man a do like I should man. I wanna be the kind of man the mirror likes to see. I wanna be a strong man an admit that I was wrong man. God I'm askin' you to come change me into the man I wanna be."_

It took a visible effort for Rayna not to lose it right there on the stage.

" _If there's any way for her and me to make another start could see what you could do to put some love back in her heart? 'Cause it's gonna take a miracle after all I've done to really make her see. That I wanna be a stay man I wanna be a brave man. I wanna be the kinda man she sees in her dreams. God I wanna be your man and I wanna be her man. God I only hope she still believes in the man I wanna be."_ He'd written this song while she was still with Luke and was adamant that she couldn't be with him.

" _Well I know this late at night that talk is cheap, but lord don't give up on me."_ He smiled on the inside as JC launched in his guitar solo. _"I wanna be a givin' I wanna start livin' man. God I'm askin' to come change me into the man I wanna be."_ He finished the song. "I love you, baby, congratulations and here's to ten more great years." He kissed her chastely.

"Deacon Claybourne, ladies and gentlemen," She spoke as he walked off the stage. It took her a moment to collect herself. Sometimes the depth of his love for her blew her away.

"Alright, Scarlett, you're takin' grandma and the kids home. You can go ahead and take Ray's car since the car seats are in there. We have my truck. You don't have to stay with them. Just swing by long enough to drop 'em off. We won't be gone long." Deacon handed her Rayna's keys.

"Uncle Deacon, I'm not just gonna do a drive by. I'm gonna make sure that they get settled ok. And I'm gonna let the dog out. Stop worryin' that you're takin' advantage of me. My oldest cousin has a cell phone surgically attached to her hand she ain't gonna be much help." Scarlett took the keys from him.

"Thanks, sweetheart, I'm just gonna gather Ray up and I will see you later." He kissed her cheek and went off in search of Rayna.

"Gunnar, I have to go get grandma and the kids settled in, but I will see you later." Scarlett told him.

"Scarlett, I'll go with you and help you. That's what you do for your girlfriend." Gunnar took her hand.

"Gunnar, you have no idea what you just signed yourself up for." Scarlett laughed at him.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I can see a little triangle forming between Maddie Colt and JC I'm just trying to keep things interesting for you guys. I had to put Scarlett and Gunnar back together. Until next time please review.


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 23

"Lamar, we have a problem we need to talk." Teddy cornered Lamar in the parking lot outside of the Opry.

"Teddy, the only thing that we have to talk about is how my stadium is coming along." Lamar replied.

"I think that there is a federal investigation into Natasha and if she is being watched they have me on tape because I went over to her place." Teddy told him lowly.

"Natasha? Really, Teddy? You should have known that she was a working girl based on her name. That or a Russian spy. Either way you should have known that she was trouble." Lamar couldn't help laughing at the predicament his former son-in-law had gotten himself into.

"Lamar, this isn't a joking matter, you have to do something." Teddy urged him. He did his best to keep up with his long strides as he walked to his car.

"I didn't say it was a joke I just said that it was funny." Lamar chuckled dryly.

"Well, what are you going to do about it? If you want your stadium any time soon you may want to keep me out of prison." Teddy all but demanded.

"Teddy, I suggest that you relax. I also suggest that you start being a little smarter about the choices you make. I will have Alfred look into this. Until then just try to stay under the radar and don't pay anymore late night visits to your whore." Lamar sneered as he got into his car.

Teddy stood out on the parking lot looking lost. He'd just trusted his soul to a man who may have been the devil himself, but it was the only hope he had.

* * *

"Scarlett! Help!" Gunnar called out as he tried unsuccessfully to put a diaper on Jaymes. He had almost had the diaper on him when he started to pee all over.

"Gunnar, you have to cover him with the diaper so he doesn't do that. It took mom a few tries to figure that out too." Daphne giggled.

"Gunnar, I just gave him a bath." Scarlett shook her head at him. She had Little Deacon already dressed in his pajamas.

"What is going on in here?" June asked with an amused look on her face.

"Gunnar tried to put a diaper on Jayme and he peed on him." Daphne grabbed her sides from laughing so hard.

"Jayme is good for that. And he has really good aim. Why don't you go upstairs and check on your sister?" June smiled.

"I can do that." Daphne ran off to check on Maddie. Though she knew that she was probably on her phone.

"Scarlett, give me Deacon Jr. and help that boy with Jayme. He is the ornerier of the two." June took Little Deacon and kissed his cheek. "Hi, sweet boy, mawmaw missed you. You are so calm and happy."

"What kind of mess do you have over here?" Scarlett addressed her boyfriend.

"He peed in my mouth, Scarlett. I think he did it on purpose." Gunnar stammered.

"Oh, he did not do it on purpose. I warned you that you didn't know what you were getting yourself into when you agreed to come help me." Scarlett got a clean diaper and put it on Jaymes. "Do you wanna try his pajamas or do you just want me to do it?"

"I got this." Gunnar put the pajamas on the infant with a little effort. "There, I win."

"Yeah, you win, Gunnar. You got a baby into his pajamas and it took you forever." Scarlett kissed his cheek. "Thank you for comin' over here with me."

"You're welcome." He smiled up at her.

"Come here, Jayme, let's give Gunnar a break before you make him never want to have kids." Scarlett picked her cousin up. "I think you and your brother get more handsome every time I see you. You got so big on me while I was out on tour."

"Scarlett, I approve of him." June said meaning Gunnar.

"I kinda approve of him too, grandma." Scarlett smiled.

"Gunnar, can you go upstairs and see what the girls want for dinner please?" June asked his sweetly.

"Sure, whatever you need, Mrs. Claybourne." Gunnar jumped up to do as she asked.

"Call me June, honey." June instructed him.

"Yes, ma'am," Gunnar agreed.

* * *

"Ray, you're gonna make me have a wreck if you don't stop." Deacon wasn't exactly complaining about the attention his wife was paying to him, but he was trying to drive and she was distracting him.

"I can't help it it's just been so long, babe." Rayna trailed kisses up and down his neck.

"There is no way we are making it to the bedroom once we get there." He groaned in the back of his throat.

"The fact that we even made it out of the Opry is a miracle for us." She grabbed him over his pants and gave him a gentle squeeze.

"Christ, Ray, you have no idea how difficult you're making it to concentrate right now." He pulled onto the road that led up to the cabin. He parked the truck in the driveway. He could barely fit the key in the lock with her hands all over his body.

They were on each other as soon as they made it through the door. Clothes flew off in all directions. Deacon laid her on the couch and climb on top of her. He kissed every inch of her body painfully slow.

"Deacon, please, I've waited six weeks for this don't make me wait any longer." Rayna begged him. Her eyes were clouded with lust.

He slid into her quickly. "Just let me know if I hurt you, baby." He whispered against her lips.

"Be gentle." She wrapped her legs around his waist.

He made love to her with slow gentle strokes because the very thought of hurting her killed him. He kissed her tenderly as she dug her nails into his back. They took their time with each other reconnecting and rediscovering each other after not being physically intimate in so long. They reached climax at the same time and lay there afterwards panting in each other's arms.

"I'd say that was well worth the wait." He laughed and pressed a kiss to the spot behind her ear.

"That was amazing, baby. You have been absolutely amazing tonight. First the flowers that you left for me and the girls, and then you being so concerned about the boys having their ears protected, and that song I was blown away by that song." She wrapped her arms around him.

"I thought you three should have something special tonight. I always did the same thing for Maddie when she was a baby. I've been waitin' for the perfect moment to play that song for you." He pulled a blanket over them. He knew that they weren't done by a long shot. Six weeks was a long time for them to go without sex.

"I was very proud of the way you handled Luke tonight. I know that that wasn't easy on you." She ran her hand along his stubble.

"What reason do I have to wanna fight him for? It was never a game for me all that ever mattered to me was your happiness. I just knew he didn't make you happy." He stroked her hair lovingly.

"You get a hundred and ten times sexier when you say things like that." She rolled on top of him and started peppering kisses down his neck and chest. That dissolved into another round of love making this time more unguarded and passionate than the last.

* * *

"JC, you can relax you have nothing at all to be nervous about." Rayna smiled to put the young man at ease.

JC shifted in his chair nervously. His signature cowboy hat was gone for a change. "When a record exec calls you into her office that's reason to be just a little excited and nervous."

"You have nothin' to worry 'bout she don't bite much." Deacon joked.

"JC, I'll cut to the chase. I think that you are a very talented artist and I think that you have a story to tell. I also think that like with anyone you have room to improve. I'm gonna make you an offer that hasn't really been made in the music industry before. I have an apprenticeship contract for you. Basically it says that I'm taking a chance on you and helping you develop your talent. We can always reevaluate things later and make this a full contract. I also have a contract here for you to be Deacon's bandleader. You can fulfill both at the same time and it puts no pressure on you." Rayna slid both contracts across the table to him.

"I'm speechless, I have no clue what to say." JC looked dumbfounded.

"Sign the contract, Jimmy, it's a good deal. She's tryin' to protect you, you're a kid and someone somewhere will take advantage of that. This business is full of sharks." Deacon advised him.

"I'm signin' the contract. I may be a lot of things, but a damn fool isn't one of them. I'm just very grateful for this opportunity." JC signed the contract.

"I already have Bucky looking into getting you into some small venues to play. That means you need to start working on getting some songs written. I know you and Maddie write together and you're friends with Scarlett, Gunnar, and Will. Use them or use Deacon or come to me if you're having trouble. I can get you some stuff that was written by other songwriters, but with you I think you're one of those artists where it's better if it's personal." Rayna leveled with him.

"Absolutely, I can do that. I sometimes sit in with Gunnar and Scarlett while they write." JC nodded his head enthusiastically.

"I think that he and Will would be a good fit together they both have that Texan thing goin' for 'em. Maybe between the two of them we can get somethin' more than that beer and truck stuff that everyone is crazy 'bout these days." Deacon suggested.

"I'll have Bucky call Will and set something up. Or hell JC and Will can set something up on their own." Rayna thought out loud.

"JC, why don't you stop by for dinner later on? Sort of a welcome to the Highway Sixty-five family thing?" Deacon asked.

"Sure, just let me know when to be there." JC smiled.

"Alright, now come here." Rayna stood and opened her arms to him.

JC hugged her. "Thank you so much for takin' a chance on me."

"You're welcome, congratulations, sweetie." Rayna rubbed his back.

"Vince would be so proud of you." Deacon said as he hugged the young man.

"Thanks, for takin' me under your wing." JC replied.

"A cowboy and two of the Triple X's just kidnapped your sons. So if you're looking for them they are back in the writer's room." Bucky stuck his head in the door.

"Thanks, Buck, we will handle the situation. Though I'm more worried about Gunnar than I am the boys. My momma said that Jayme got him pretty good last night." Deacon chuckled.

"Jayme has gotten me pretty good a couple of times." Bucky retorted.

"JC, why don't you go back in the writer's room and see if you can shake something loose?" Rayna suggested.

"I can do that." JC headed back to the writer's room.

* * *

"What do you guys have to tell us this time? The last time you sat us down like this it was to tell us that you were pregnant." Maddie looked between her parents.

"It's nothin' like that." Deacon assured her. He had Jaymes in his arms feeding him.

"What is it then?" Daphne asked.

"Well, after last night I've been doing a lot of thinking. I think that you two are ready." Rayna stated simply. She was feeding Little Deacon a bottle.

"Ready for what?" Maddie's face betrayed her confusion.

"Ready to be signed with Highway Sixty-five." Rayna couldn't keep the smile off herself as the girls both registered what she had said.

"No way, mom!" Daphne squealed.

"Seriously? You're not just playing with us?" Maddie's face lit up.

"I wouldn't play with you girls like that I know how much this means to you. Deacon is the one who suggested it. You two are extremely talented and special. Who better to help you both navigate the business than your own mother?" Rayna replied.

"There are rules to this, but this is setting you up to really hit it big once you get out of school." Deacon brought Maddie back down to earth a little bit.

"I don't care this is just so awesome. Thank you, dad, thank you so much." Maddie hugged him tightly.

"You're welcome," Deacon loved seeing that smile on her face.

"Mom, you are so awesome thank you. This means so much to me." Maddie hugged Rayna.

"You're welcome, sweet girl." Rayna beamed at her.

"Deacon, you are the best." Daphne kissed his cheek.

"Thanks, Squirt." Deacon replied.

"Mom, this is so amazing." Daphne hugged her mother.

"You girls are amazing." Rayna said.

"I have to call JC and tell him. He's not going to believe this." Maddie grabbed her phone.

"I have to call my friends too." Daphne took her phone out and scurried out of the room.

"Does it say somethin' to you that she wants to call JC before Colt?" Deacon smirked.

"Deacon, she's fifteen. Don't go getting any ideas in your head. I will say this though. It says something to me that JC sent her flowers last night and Colt didn't." She gave him a knowing look.

"Do we have a situation on our hands?" He asked.

"I don't think Maddie and JC know that there is a situation to be addressed. For as grown up as he is he's still a teenage boy." She shrugged her shoulders.

"You gonna be ok alone with the boys tonight if I head into the studio for a few hours to finish up my album?" He asked.

"Deacon, I will be fine without you. The girls are here to help me and your momma is in town. Where is she today anyway?" She reassured him.

"She wanted to do some sight seein'. I got her a car and driver for the day." He replied as the doorbell rang.

"Maddie, can you get the door please?" She called out.

Maddie returned to the room a moment later with JC. "So, if you two don't need him I'm gonna borrow him for a little while."

"Go on, you two are label mates now it's good for you to work together." Deacon told them.

"You got signed too?" Maddie threw her arms around JC's neck.

"Yeah, I got signed too. This is like the best day ever." JC hugged her back.

"Totally, the best day ever. Come on, let's go write." Maddie dragged him off to the music room.

"They remind me so much of us." Rayna mused.

"Damn good thing that they have us to keep them from making the mistakes that we did." Deacon replied. "I think it's time for you to burp. It'd be great if you don't spit up all over daddy like you did Uncle Will earlier." He put Jaymes over his shoulder.

"To Will's credit he didn't freak out as much as Gunnar did." She shook her head. Gunnar was just so awkward about everything that it oddly endearing.

"Jayme is the one that we have to watch out for he likes to spit up and pee on all the prospective babysitters." He patted his back to get him to burp.

* * *

"Deacon, if you're satisfied with that you have your demo album ready to go." Sam the sound tech told him.

"I'm still not really sure about Whiskey and You. I think Sadie is around here somewhere give me one second." Deacon stepped out in the hall to look for his friend.

"Deacon, she's gonna tell you what everyone else has told you it sounds fine." JC called behind him.

"Little Sister," Deacon called out when he caught sight of Sadie.

"Deacon, did your wife let you out of the house without a chaperone?" Sadie walked over and hugged him.

"She did she didn't have another choice if she wanted this album she keeps pressurin' me for. Speakin' of that can you listen to a song for me real quick and tell me what you think?" Deacon asked her hopefully.

"You kiddin' after everythin' you've done for me I'd love to help you out." Sadie replied.

"JC, play it for Sadie." Deacon motioned for him to start the song over.

"He's bein' OCD I wrote, composed, scored, and produced the whole album myself." JC played the song from the beginning.

" _There's a bottle on the dresser by your ring and it's empty so right now I don't feel at thing. And I'll be hurtin' when I wake up on the floor, but I'll be over it by noon. That's the difference between the whiskey and you."_

Sadie closed her eyes and really listened to the song.

" _Come tomorrow I can walk in any store it ain't a problem they'll always sell me more, but your forgiveness well, that's something I can't buy there ain't a thing that I can do. That's the difference between the whiskey and you. One's the devil one keeps driving me insane at times I wonder if they ain't both the same, but one's a liar that helps to hide me from my pain and one's the long gone bitter truth that's the difference between the whiskey and you."_

Deacon just couldn't be satisfied with this song no matter how many times he played it back.

" _I've got a problem, but it ain't like what you think I drink 'cause I'm lonesome I'm lonesome 'cause I drink. But if I don't break down and bring it on myself it'll hit right out of the blue. That's the difference between the whiskey and you. One's the devil and one keeps driving me insane at times I wonder if they ain't both the same, but one's a liar that helps to hide me from my pain and one's the long gone bitter truth that's the difference between the whiskey and you. Ah, that's the difference between the whiskey and you."_

"Deacon, it's perfect. I wish I had someone who loved me half as much as you love her. That's really beautiful. Leave it just the way it is." Sadie gave him her honest opinion.

"I'll leave it the way it is then. Thanks for your help, Little Sister." Deacon smiled at her.

"I'm gonna call Rayna and tell her not to leave you unsupervised anymore you're a danger to yourself and to society." She joked with him.

"You wouldn't be the first person to tell her that. She'd only ask you if I need bail money." He started packing his stuff up. "Sam, that's a wrap make me a demo copy and I'll take it over to the studio."

"Uncle Deacon, did you want me to get a demo copy of that song I recorded?" JC asked.

"Yeah, I want a demo copy of that too. We're tryin' to find your depth and I want Bucky to hear it to see what he thinks." Deacon added.

"Did you hear about our song?" Sadie asked him.

"Sadie, you know that I don't follow this stuff you're gonna have to tell me." Deacon reminded her.

"Things A Mama Don't Know is sitting at number five on the country radio charts right now." Sadie reported excitedly.

"That's awesome, Sadie. It felt just as good for me to get that one out as it did for you I think." Deacon slung his bag over his shoulder and picked up his guitar case.

"It doesn't feel like he's getting away with something anymore." Sadie felt much better too.

"You want JC and me to walk you to your car?" Deacon asked her.

"Yeah, that would be nice." She smiled.

"JC, you comin'?" Deacon called to the young man.

"I'm comin'," JC grabbed his guitar.

Sadie linked arms with the both of them. "Thank you two gentlemen for walkin' a lady to her car. I believe I can take it from here." She dug around her purse for her keys. "Shit, I think I left my keys in the studio."

"I'll get 'em for you. I'm the fastest." JC volunteered.

"I'll carry your guitar to the truck for you." Deacon picked up his guitar case and headed for the truck. He tossed their gear into the truck and pulled around to wait for JC. He got there just in time to hear a gunshot go off. He threw the truck in park and jumped out. "Sadie, what happened?"

Sadie stood there trembling with a gun in her hands. Pete laid on the ground in a pool of blood.

"Sadie, listen give me the gun. It's ok you're safe now. Just let me take the gun." JC came back out and gently pried the gun from her hand. He sat it on the trunk of her car and got down on his knees next to Pete. He took his shirt off and used it to apply pressure to his wound. "Pete, stay with me." Because he was Special Forces he had training in field care.

"It's gonna be ok, Sadie." Deacon pulled his phone out and dialed 911.

* * *

"Deacon should be back by now I wonder what is taking him so long." Rayna looked at the time on the cable box.

"I'm sure he just got held up and he will be home as soon as he can." June tried her best to reassure her.

"You're probably right. It's just not like him to miss bedtime with the boys no matter how busy he is." Rayna couldn't help worrying a little bit. She was so used to having to worry about what Deacon was up to that she still worried even though he was sober now.

"You know how Deacon is when he gets his mind set on somethin' there's nothin' that's gonna distract him until he finishes." June reminded her.

Rayna picked up her phone and dialed her husband's number. "Deacon, it's me. I guess you got caught up in the studio or something. Just call me when you get this and let me know that you're ok. I'm getting kinda worried about you, babe. I love you and I'll talk to you later." She hung up. "He's not answering his phone, but with Deacon that doesn't mean anything."

"Sweetie, Deacon was born to make people worry about him. He was one of those little boys that was always gettin' hurt and that was without the injuries he got from Paul. You better get used to bein' worried boys are worse about that than girls are." June put a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"I know that I really know that everything is ok. I just can't help worrying. In the back of my mind I can't help thinking about all the late night phone calls I got from the jail to come bail him out or the times that I got called up to the hospital because they had to pump all the booze out of his stomach again. There were a couple of times he was so drunk he was barely responsive and I had to have him rushed to the hospital. I know that's not the man he is anymore, but I still worry." Rayna sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"The important thing is that you never gave up on him. My son would be dead right now if it weren't for you. I don't think he would have had the strength to get sober and stay sober if it weren't for you. Always remember that." June told her.

Rayna smiled her thanks and got up to answer the persistent knock on the door. "Can I help you?" Her blood ran cold when she saw two police officers standing on her front porch.

"Mrs. Deacon Claybourne?" One of the officers questioned.

"That's me." Rayna confirmed.

"Mrs. Claybourne, we need you to come down to the station with us. Call your lawyer on the way. Your husband is gonna need one." The other officer informed her.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I threw a couple twists in there that were different from the show. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	24. Chapter 24

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are She's Got This Thing About Her by Chris Young and I'm Gettin' Stoned by Eric Church.

* * *

Chapter 24

"Mr. Claybourne, run through what happened with us one more time." The detective handling Sadie's case said.

"I was in the studio finishin' up my album. I asked Sadie to come in and listen to one of my songs and then I offered to walk her to her car. I know she's been havin' problems with her ex husband and she has a restraining order against him. Anyway she left her keys in the studio and JC ran back in to get them and I went to put our gear in the truck and pull it around to wait for him." Deacon told him for the third time.

"Where were you parked?" He asked.

"I was parked on the same level as Sadie." Deacon gave the same answer again.

"Ok, what happened next?" He inquired.

"A gun shot went off. I got out of the truck to see if Sadie was ok." Deacon was so tired of repeating himself.

"How much of the altercation did you see?" He stared into Deacon's eyes in hopes he could see if he were lying.

"Mr. Grayson, I know that it's been a long night and that you must be tired, but if you could run through the events just one more time that would be great." The detective questioning JC said.

"Deacon and I walked Sadie to her car after we finished up in the studio. She forgot her keys and I ran back in to get them." JC was wearing a t-shirt that one of the officers had given him.

"What happened when you got back out to the garage?" He asked.

"I heard a gun shot and I rushed over. I took the gun from Sadie and sat it on the trunk of her car. Then I dropped down and started administering first aid to Pete." JC repeated his story yet again.

"But how much did you see?" The detective asked.

"Ms. Stone, I'm not going to lie to you these charges could end up being serious. Not only did you shoot your ex husband you did it with an unregistered firearm. Let's just go through your version of what happened." Another detective asked Sadie.

"I was at the studio all day as I was getting ready to leave I ran into Deacon and he wanted me to listen to a song for him. After I did that he pretty much insisted on walking me out he knows that I've been having problems with Pete and he likes to think he's my big brother and he has to watch out for me. He and JC walked me to my car. I forgot my keys and JC went to get them for me. Deacon went to get his truck. Pete came out of the shadows as soon as Deacon walked away and he started threatening me and he came at me like he was going to grab me." Sadie's voice was flat and monotone.

"Excuse me, detective, Ms. Stone's lawyer and label head are both here." A young police officer stuck his head in the door.

"You're not being detained right now you're free to go talk to whomever you want to." The detective waved Sadie out of the room.

"Rayna, I'm so sorry to be such a bother like this." Sadie said when she saw her friend.

"Stop, don't apologize, you're fine." Rayna pulled her into a hug.

"I don't even know what happened." Sadie muttered.

"Ms. Stone, don't worry about that for now. The only thing that you really have to worry about is the illegal gun charge and that can be pled down. It could have been much worse had your ex died, but he didn't." The lawyer assured her.

"I swear to God being in a police station is never fun." JC came out of an interview room groaning and rubbing the back of his neck.

"Jimmy, where's Deacon?" Rayna asked.

"I don't know I haven't seen him in hours." JC replied.

"I'm right here, babe." Deacon walked over with a cup of coffee in his hand.

"You ok, babe?" Rayna put her arms around him.

"I'm fine, I'm more worried about Little Sister." Deacon shot a small smile in Sadie's direction.

"I'm ok, Deacon, stop worrying so much about me." Sadie said out of habit.

"Sadie, you're not fine you're shakin'." JC looped his arm around her shoulders.

"Ms. Stone, you're free to go at this time. However, this is an ongoing investigation don't leave the state." The detective told her.

"Come on you two are coming home with us. I'm not going to hear any arguments about it." Rayna told Sadie and JC.

"JC, you can sleep on the couch and Sadie I'll put you on the fold out in the music room where you won't be disturbed." Deacon took Rayna's hand. "Ray, my truck is in the middle of a crime scene right now you're gonna have to drive."

"That's fine." Rayna replied.

* * *

"No, don't, stop it." JC muttered in his sleep. He tossed and turned fitfully on the couch. "Get the hell away from her."

"JC, come on, sweetie, you're havin' a bad dream." Rayna shook him gently to wake him. "Jimmy, wake up." She shook him a little harder.

JC sat bolt upright covered in sweat. It took him a moment to get his bearings. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you."

"It's fine you didn't." Rayna assured him.

"I didn't wake the boys did I?" JC rubbed the sleep out of his eyes.

"No, the boys have been up. It's almost noon. We all had a late night. We let you sleep in it looked like you needed it." Rayna smiled softly at him.

"I'll just get up and get going." JC started to get up.

"No, sit, here's coffee." Rayna handed him a coffee cup. "Demons?" She was referring to his dream.

"Yeah, thanks for the coffee." JC nodded his thanks.

"Deacon too he has nightmares sometimes." Rayna told him.

Deacon and Sadie came into the room before they could explore that topic of conversation any further. Deacon put the boys in their swings.

"JC, I don't know I'm ever gonna be able to thank you for what you did last night." Sadie sat down on the couch beside him.

"It was nothin' don't mention it." JC waved off her thanks.

"Sadie, why didn't you tell me that you were feeling that unsafe? There are people that you can hire so you don't have to go out and get a gun." Rayna asked her.

"I know I was just so embarrassed that I ever let him put a hand on me to begin with and then that he sucker punched me on my own front porch. I honestly thought it was over when he got the money that he wanted and I could breathe easier. I guess he wasn't thrilled about being called out for being a wife beater." Sadie put her hands over her face.

"None of it was your fault that was all on him. He was the one who put his hands on you. You didn't ask for that. You're not the one to blame for any of it he is." Deacon told her firmly.

"Oh, God, what have I done?" Sadie groaned.

"You didn't shoot him he shot himself. He got his finger on the trigger when he was fighting you over the gun." JC threw out there. "I heard some talk at the police station. They swabbed Pete's hands and he had gun shot residue on them and I think his print was on the trigger. People say things in front of me because they think I'm just a stupid kid who doesn't know anythin'." He added when he saw the looks he was getting.

"I should have never pulled the gun on him. I should have just let him do what he was gonna do to me and then had him arrested for walkin' through the restraining order." Sadie's bottom lip quivered.

"Don't think like that. You saved your own life last night. This time could have been the time that he finally really hurt you badly or killed you. Remember how I told you about my father?" Deacon looked her in the eye as he spoke.

"I remember." Sadie nodded limply.

"I didn't give you the whole story. I said that he never put his hands on any of us again after I put him on his ass and that was a lie. The night I graduated high school he came in drunk and hell bent on takin' out his frustrations on someone. I wasn't gonna let that happen we got into a brawl like two grown men. I put him on his ass again. He hated that he couldn't bully me anymore and he pulled a gun on me. Where he got it I don't know. I wrestled the gun away from him and when I did it went off. It was a graze wound, but it was enough to get my momma worried. I left Natchez a few hours later and I didn't go back for a long time." Deacon told his story.

Rayna squeezed his shoulder in a show of support.

"While Uncle Deacon was givin' his daddy a flesh wound I killed my sister's boyfriend when I was fifteen. He was abusive and she had a restraining order against him. He came to the house one night when we were there alone. He forced his way in the door and he just started beating the holy shit out of her. I tried to pull him off of her, but the son of a bitch was drugged out and he was a mountain of a man. Threw me around like a rag doll and broke my arm. He got done with me and he went over to I guess finish her off. I saw the shotgun on the mantle I grabbed it and I blew a hole in his chest. I'll never forget the first officer on the scene tellin' me 'you saved your sister's life tonight, son. You should be proud of yourself.' So, sometimes you gotta do what you have to in order to survive and you ain't gotta feel bad for it." JC shared his sad tale. He had to swallow around a lump in his throat to finish.

"Sadie, you ain't the only one who has had to do somethin' like that. It don't make you a bad person. It just means that you were strong enough to survive." Deacon looked at JC with a new respect in his eyes.

Sadie was going to reply, but her phone rang. "Hello," She listened to what the caller on the other end of the phone had to say. "I understand, detective, thank you for calling." She hung up.

"Everything ok?" Rayna asked her.

"They are dropping all the charges and they aren't bothering with the gun charge. They are going charge Pete for violating the restraining order. He said that it was a clear cut case of self defense. A witness said that he saw something that there's no way he could have seen." Sadie took a shuddering breath. "Thank you, Deacon, thank you for showin' me that there are still good men left in this world."

"Anythin' for you, Little Sister. As far as I'm concerned he got what he had comin' to him. You shouldn't be in trouble for protectin' yourself." Deacon gave her a lopsided grin.

"And thank you, JC, I know you were the one who told them to go back and look at the security footage and that Pete had been stalking me." Sadie half smiled.

"It was the right thing to do." JC said like it was no big deal.

"I just don't know what to do with myself right now. Maybe I should just go back home and forget about everything." Sadie was at a loss.

"Sadie, that man made your life hell and he made you fear for your life. Don't let him take your voice away from you too." Rayna took both her hands. "If you do that he really wins and he doesn't deserve to win."

Deacon got up and retrieved a set of keys from the key hook. "If you need to get away for a little while take my cabin. It's fully stocked and no one will bother you up there. I'm sure that the press is already camped outside of your place. Give your keys to JC and he will go over there and get some of your stuff if that's what you want."

"Deacon, I can't ask you to do that for me. You've already done more than enough." Sadie protested.

"Sadie, take the cabin please. Take some time to yourself. I'll know where you are if I need to get in touch with you. Just don't throw your career away." Rayna advised her.

"Ok, I can do that." Sadie agreed.

"You can even use my truck. We can trade cars while you're away. I'll just go sneak into your place and get you some clothes together." JC offered.

"You've done more than enough too." Sadie told him.

"I don't mind it though. Let me help. I kinda have a thing for savin' damsels in distress." JC gave her an easy smile and she deposited her keys in his hand.

"Babe, I have somethin' for you." Deacon said once JC and Sadie had both departed.

"What is it?" Rayna smiled at him.

Deacon got into his bag and pulled out the demo album out. "I finished my album." He handed it to her.

"I'll listen to it. What do you have going on today?" She asked him.

"I have to go over to Juliette's and write with her. She just called and asked me to come over." He kissed both the boys on the head before he began gathering his things.

"I'm gonna take these two to the office for a little while. I'll listen to this while I'm there." She smiled at him.

"I think you're gonna like it." He leaned in and kissed her.

"I'll see you at the office later." She smiled against his lips.

"You will see me there later." He kissed her again.

* * *

"Hey, Juliette," Deacon smiled as he walked in on Juliette holding Cadence.

"Hi, Deacon, thanks for coming over so quickly. I asked Avery for help, but he had things to do with the band today." Juliette smiled back at him.

He sat down on the couch next to her. "Not a problem at all. Look at her, she is beautiful. Can I hold her?"

"Of course you can." She handed the baby to him. "Baby girl, this is your Uncle Deacon."

"Hi, sweetheart, you're so tiny compared to those two boys I got at home. Yeah, you three are gonna be great friends." He cooed at her.

"So, do you wanna get right down to writing or what?" She wanted to get down to business.

"Sure, but I think someone needs a diaper change first." He replied.

"Emily," She called out for her personal assistant.

"She was on her way out the door when she let me in." He told her. "You know what, let me get this I'm an old pro. You could use the rest."

"Thank you, Deacon, her nursery is right down the hall you can't miss it." She gave him directions.

"Deacon, you really are a life saver. This song is amazing and she is quiet for the first time all day." She told him an hour later.

"I'm happy to help. The rock and walk always does the trick with Jayme too. I'm gonna go put her down for her and then I'm gonna get out of your hair. You need to nap when she's nappin'." He put Cadence in her crib and gathered his stuff.

* * *

" _It might be her smile 'cause it can change my day blue eyes that chase my blues away. It might be her touch that keeps me comin' back for more. Her lovin' words that keep me goin' strong that heart of hers I hang my future on. What it is well I can't say for sure. It's just she's got this thing about her. She's got this thing about her. Like the magic in your favorite song you just can't put your finger on. In her arms when we're all alone I get the feeling that I've come back home. She's got this thing about her."_

One of the tracks from Deacon's new album came from the speaker's of Rayna's computer.

"Look at you smiling like that you know that's daddy singing. You better stop playing around and eat, Deac." She cooed at her nursing son.

" _She stops time when she moves through a room when she leaves she's always gone too soon and I'm counting down the minutes 'til she's back. She's the love I've known eternally that always feels brand new to me I can't separate the fiction from the fact. It's just she's got this thing about her. She's got this thing about her. Like a hymn in a cathedral hall or watching April snowflakes fall. In her arms when we're all alone I get the feeling that I've come back home she's got this thing about her. Like the magic in your favorite song you just can't put your finger on. She's got this thing about her."_

"That man is just damned and determined that he is gonna make me cry. Yes, he likes making your momma an emotional mess." She adjusted both the boys so they could nurse better.

" _Read it in the paper marked the date on the wall to remind myself to celebrate the day I lose it all. They've made plans to be together I made plans to be alone she got a rock I'm gettin' stoned. Damn right I've got objections but it's awful too late now the cans are on the limo and the rice is on the ground. They're headed for the islands, but hell I'm already gone. She got a rock I'm gettin' stoned. Here's to happy ever after and here's to balls and chains here's to all us haters of old lovers' new last names and here's to holdin' up and gettin' right where I belong she got a rock I'm gettin' stoned."_

"Wow, someone was pissed off when he wrote this song." She couldn't help laughing.

" _Yeah, I knew that it was over when I heard those weddin' bells. That preacher was my jailer now this bottle is my bail. So much for all that prayin' her I do would be I don't she got a rock and I'm gettin' stoned. Here's to happy ever after and here's to balls and chains. Here's to all us haters of old lovers' new last names. Here's to holdin' up and gettin' right where I belong. She got a rock I'm gettin' stoned. So to hell with her and him and that white horse they rode out on. She got a rock I'm gettin' stoned. Yeah she got a rock I'm gettin' stoned. Yeah, I'm gettin' stoned."_

"Jayme, what am I gonna do with that silly daddy of yours?" She kissed the top of his head. "I think you're both ready to burp." She put one them over each of her shoulders and patted both their backs. It took some doing, but it was something that she had gotten good at.

"I'm sorry I missed feeding time." Deacon snuck into her office quietly.

"It's nice to just have some time alone with them sometimes. You have boy time with them in the morning and you're so attentive with them that I barely have to lift a finger." She leaned up and let him kiss her.

"How are you likin' the album?" He was excited to hear what she had to say.

"I love it, but I'm Gettin' Stoned? Really, Deacon?" She grinned.

"It was appropriate at the time I wrote it." He shrugged his shoulders.

"I love the whole album, Deacon. This is what I'm talking about with the other artists. They need to dig down deep and write their feelings. I'm gonna make it mandatory for them to listen to this album. With most artists I'd say sixteen songs is overkill, but I think it's perfect. I gave it to Bucky to listen to and he loves it too." She was so proud of him that she couldn't put it into words.

"I'm glad you like it. Babe, I'm beyond flattered that you think it's that good." He knew that she would tell him if there was something he needed to work on. He took the boys and laid them in their playpen.

"Deacon, you're more than good enough you always have been. I say it all the time, but there would be no Rayna Jaymes without Deacon Claybourne and I mean that. You don't need me to be great, but I do need you." She took both of his hands.

"That's not true we need each other. A little I save you if you'll save me." He wrapped her up in his arms.

"Sounds like there's a song in there. If you don't watch out I'll make you write it." She never felt as safe and as loved as she did in his arms.

"It'll be a good one too. We make beautiful things together." He smiled over at the boys.

"That we do," She agreed.

"Your daughter texted me with a request and I wanted to check with you before I told her it was ok. JC is pulling roadie duty for the Triple X's tonight. She wants to know if she can go watch the concert with him." He rested his chin on her shoulder.

"You're her daddy, babe. You can make these decisions or her without consulting me. If you think that this is something she can handle you can tell her that she can go." She wanted him to feel like he had some say with Maddie.

"In that case I'm gonna let her go." He took out his phone and texted her back.

"Have I shown you your new office yet?" She asked him.

"No you haven't." He replied.

"Then, I think that you and I need to go break it in while those two are content." She led him down the hall by the hand after grabbing the baby monitor.

* * *

"Thanks for inviting me tonight, JC." Maddie smiled at him.

"No problem, I'm glad to have the company. I won't really have anymore work to do until everything has to be packed in." JC smiled back at her.

"Some friends are supposed to be meeting me here and I can introduce them to my writing buddy." She pushed his shoulder playfully.

"I'm not too sure how well I'll fit in with you little Belle Meade private school friends, but sure that'll be nice." He joked around with her.

"Oh, shut up, my friends aren't even like that." She protested.

"I'm serious, I don't know you might get kicked out of the Belle Meade Princess circle if they catch you hangin' out with a broke cowboy who moonlights as a roadie." He kept teasing her.

"You are such a dork when you want to be." She rolled her eyes at him.

"Hey, there's two of my favorite people." Will walked over and threw an arm around both of them.

"Hey, Will." Maddie greeted him.

"Texas forever," JC whooped.

"Texas forever," Will bumped knuckles with him.

"Guys, are so weird." Scarlett walked over in time to see that. "Maddie, I'm glad that you're here. I should probably rescue you from these two before they start rebel yellin' or somethin' else equally Texan."

"I'm kinda shocked dad said yes truthfully." Maddie admitted.

"Which is why if you're not on your best behavior tonight you're comin' home with me so he doesn't find out about it. Go have fun be fifteen. And tomorrow morning impromptu writing session at my place Your momma and daddy gave us all homework, but it's gonna be fun." Scarlett advised her.

"My friends just showed up, I'll see you later, Scarlett. And count me in." Maddie went to meet her friends.

"Here, I brought you a beer." Will handed JC a beer.

"Thank you, if you get me drunk you're takin' over my duties as roadie." JC gratefully accepted the beer.

"Will's nervous because he invited a boy that likes to come tonight." Scarlett said lowly.

"Oh, Will's got a crush." JC taunted him.

"Ya'll can shut up it ain't like that I just like writin' with him." Will protested.

"We are teasing Will about his date without me here?" Gunnar walked over.

"Will is no longer the focus of this conversation. Gunnar, did you piss Scarlett off and she let you walk out of the house wearin' that hat to teach you a lesson?" JC hid his smirk.

"Oh, the kid has jokes I like him. Bucky is calling him a young Deacon mixed with Will. Not only is he musically gifted he's funny." Avery clapped him on the back.

Maddie walked back over with a group of her friends that included Colt. "This is the band, Avery, Gunnar, and my cousin Scarlett. That's Will as I'm sure you know and that is JC." She introduced them.

"We remember these friends, not real sure any of them were in any condition to remember us, but we remember them." Scarlett said.

"JC, we are gonna go mingle if you wanna join us." Maddie offered. She stood so close to Colt that they were almost touching.

"Maybe in a little while. Will needs my help with something right now. I'll catch up with you I promise." JC took an instant dislike to Colt and he couldn't even put his finger on why he didn't like him.

"You better if you invited me just to ditch me I'll have to beat you up." Maddie grabbed his bicep.

"Did we not just have the conversation about I'm a Green Beret and if I really wanted to I could kill you with one finger?" JC laughed and the lines around his eyes creased up.

"Because you were being lame again and I had to threaten to hand you Jayme after he gets done eating to get you to stop." Maddie slapped his chest playfully before she walked off.

"Looks like your date is goin' 'bout as well as mine is." Will had to laugh at his expense.

"Point him out to me and I'll go talk to him for you I'll even pass him a note that says check yes or no." JC handed his bullshit back to him.

"No you aren't doin' that ever again. We agreed after last time to never take a risk like that again." Will stopped him.

"Seriously though, Will, introduce me because I wanna meet the guy and so you have an excuse to talk to him. Come on, man, use your brain." JC tapped his temple.

"Yeah, that's a great idea." Will agreed. "Come on, I'll introduce you." He led him off to another part of the bar.

"They are both crushing hard. In JC's case I don't think he even knows it. I just know if looks could kill that Wheeler kid would be dead right now." Avery observed.

"Yep, if thoughts could kill he'd be dead. Deacon can't stand him." Scarlett agreed.

"Come on, we need to get ready to go on. We can't worry about that state of your cousin's love life." Gunnar put his hand on the small of her back.

"Be nice to me or I'm gonna volunteer you and only you to watch Jayme for an hour." Scarlett smirked at him and walked off.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter I hope you enjoyed it. I'm taking the whole Will coming out thing and the Juliette thing in slightly different directions, but I promise it's gonna be worth it. Until next time time please review.


	25. Chapter 25

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are You and Tequila by Kenny Chesney and Sinners Like Me by Eric Church.

* * *

Chapter 25

"You excited about your campin' trip this weekend, Squirt?" Deacon asked as the girls got ready for school.

"I'm really excited it's gonna be a lot of fun." Daphne chattered away.

He would have attempted to make conversation with Maddie, but she had her headphones in her ears.

"Well, don't ya'll look like a lively bunch this morning." Rayna came into the kitchen fully dressed.

"I spent half the night on the couch with Deac. I don't know what his problem was last night, but he was really fussy." He replied. "What are you so dressed up for?"

"I only have a week of maternity leave left and I'm gonna just ease myself back into things. There is some stuff that I wanna take care of. You stay home with the boys and come in when you feel like it. I know that you were up and down with Deac all night. I'm gonna take the girls to school and let you get some rest. It's time for me to get back in the swing of things." She pecked his lips.

"You have no idea how good that sounds to me." He grinned at her.

"What's with Maddie this morning?" Rayna knew that she could talk about her daughter and she wouldn't hear her.

"I don't know what's up with her. She's been in a mood the last few days if you haven't noticed." He shrugged his shoulders. He didn't understand teenage girls.

"I've noticed I would have to be comatose not to have noticed." Rayna rolled her eyes. She walked over and pulled one of the headphones out of Maddie's ear. "Maddie, time for school. We have to get going."

"Whatever, mom, I'll be in the car." Maddie got up with a huff and grabbed her bag before heading out to the car.

"If I was anything like her I admire my father's restraint at only throwing me out of the house instead of killing me." Rayna sighed.

"How, 'bout this, you get the girls off to school and I will get the boys ready and we will meet you at the studio? We still have a couple tracks to lay down for that duet album. You can do your stuff at the office this afternoon after we finish." He suggested.

"That sounds amazing actually. I'll see you at the studio in lets say an hour?" Rayna asked him.

"That works for me. I'll go get the outlaw and the rebel ready as soon as you leave." He replied.

"See you then." Rayna gave him a quick kiss. "Come on, Daph, let's go."

"Bye, sweet girl, have a good time this weekend." Rayna bid Daphne farewell when she got out of the car.

"Bye, mom," Daphne chirped happily.

"So I was thinking with your sister busy this weekend it might be nice for you and I to get some one on one time in. Jade St. John is in town and I can get us tickets to the concert if you want." Rayna turned to Maddie.

"Mom, I have plans already. I'm supposed to hang out with my friends." Maddie replied quickly.

"Alright, well have a good day." Rayna told her as she climbed out of the car. She hadn't made it very far when she realized that Daphne left her overnight bag in the car. She pressed a button on her steering wheel and called Deacon. "Hey, babe, I know that I'm supposed to be meeting you at the studio, but Daphne left her bag in the car and I'm gonna be running a little late."

"Ray, when you said an hour I figured on it bein' closer to two. You're never on time for anythin' and I don't expect you to start now." Deacon laughed on the other end of the phone.

"Don't you get sassy with me, boy, I will have to punish you later if you're not careful." She bit her lip. Things between the two of them turned dirty quickly if they weren't careful.

"Oh, I wish you would. It seems like it's been so long since I got any lovin' from you." He retorted.

"I think we are addicted to each other it's only been two days." That was slow torture for them though they didn't go long periods without having sex. She pulled into a parking spot and looked up in time to see Maddie kissing a boy. Her jaw dropped when she saw that it was Colt. "Babe, I'm gonna have to call you back." She hung up on him without waiting for a reply. She took her sunglasses off just to make sure that she wasn't seeing things.

* * *

"I know, your momma is so slow and we are gonna be waitin' on her for probably another half hour." Deacon pushed the boys back and forth in their stroller. He was standing in the sound booth with Bucky waiting for Rayna.

"Deacon, I know that you don't expect anything less out of her. You're the one I count on to be on time. I always have. Even drunk you were still more reliable than her about being on time." Bucky just shook his head there wasn't much else that he could do or say.

"I'm gonna take them for a lap around the building while we are waitin' they get a little impatient." Deacon told him.

"I'll be here when she gets here." Bucky replied.

Deacon made a lap around to the front door just as Rayna walked in. "There you are, what held you up?"

"I may have gotten to the bottom of Maddie's attitude problem lately." Rayna informed him.

"What is it?" He asked. He craned his head in annoyance when Luke walked out talking to Jeff.

"Oh, you'll see." Rayna marched over to where Luke and Jeff stood.

"Rayna, hey," Luke greeted her cheerfully.

"Hey, are you two working together now?" Rayna asked to be polite.

"I'm actually working on developing new talent." Jeff's jaw had clenched at the question.

"It's good to have a hobby." She quipped.

Jeff had to walk right past Deacon and the boys to leave. He looked down at the boys and then up at Deacon again. "I don't know, Luke, if I were you I would demand a DNA test."

Rayna turned to look at Deacon there was no telling how he would react to that.

Deacon stiffened up and fought every urge in him that was telling him to kill Jeff slowly with his bare hands. "Jeff, don't you have to go snort coke off the nipples of underage call girls or whatever it is you super villains do with your time? I mean you should be happy you don't have a job anymore you have all the time in the world to live like a porn star now."

Jeff's face turned red and he walked out without another word.

"I would have thought that Freakin' Deacon would have knocked him into the middle of next week for that one." Luke mused.

"Believe me, I wanted to." Deacon seethed.

"Luke, I was at the school this morning and I saw Maddie talking to Colt. I didn't know that he was staying here now." Rayna broached the subject casually.

"Yeah, he's been back for a couple of weeks now." Luke replied.

"The only reason I mention it is because I saw them making out." Rayna could almost see the steam coming out of Deacon's ears without turning around to look at him.

"Well, that's not so odd considering they are boyfriend and girlfriend." Luke informed her.

"Since when?" Deacon asked.

"For a few weeks now. I assumed that you knew she's been spendin' a lot of time out at the ranch with him." Luke answered.

"That's interesting. Thanks, for being so willing to have this conversation." Rayna smiled at him.

"The first of many I'm sure since our kids are together." Luke smiled back. He went over and peeked down at Little Deacon and Jaymes. "Well, you sure are some cute little fellas ya'll look just like your daddy."

"It's nap time you ain't gonna get much of a response outta 'em." Deacon made conversation.

"Hey, Luke, you wouldn't happen to know if the kids have plans this weekend would you?" Rayna asked.

"Yeah, Colt had me get them tickets to the Jade St. John concert." Luke replied.

"Just curious, thanks." Rayna said.

"No problem, I'll see you around." Luke headed back into the studio.

"Babe," Rayna tried talking to Deacon.

"Oh, Ray, not now. We should probably just go record those songs now." Deacon took a deep breath.

"I know you're pissed. I'm pissed too, but you can lay into her later. Come on, let's go get some work done." Rayna guided him back to the studio.

" _Baby here I am again kicking dust in the canyon wind waiting for that sun to go down. Made it up Mulholland Drive hell bent on getting high, high above the lights of town."_ Deacon started the song.

" ' _Cause you and tequila make me crazy run like poison in my blood. One more night could kill me baby one is one too many one more is never enough."_ They sang in unison. This was the song they had written together the night the twins were conceived.

" _Thirty days and thirty nights been putting up a real good fight there were times I thought you'd win. It's so easy to forget the bitter taste the morning left swore I wouldn't go back there again."_ The words couldn't have described their relationship more perfectly if they'd tried.

" ' _Cause you and tequila make me crazy run like poison in my blood. One more night could kill me baby one is one too many one more is never enough."_

" _When it comes to you oh, the damage I could do. It's always your favorite sins that do you in."_ Rayna harmonized with him at the end of that line.

" _Cause you and tequila make me crazy run like poison in my blood. One more night could kill me baby one is one too many and one more is never enough. Never enough, you and tequila, you and tequila."_

" _Make me crazy."_ She sang softly.

"As usual you two nailed it. And have I thanked you for getting married and not inflicting your torture on anyone else?" Bucky's voice came over the intercom.

"Buck, we're together again that means you have to go back to checking utility closets to find us when we disappear together." Deacon reminded him.

"Yeah, I'm holding the manifestation of your inability to keep your hands off of each other in my arms right now." Bucky retorted.

Rayna threw back her head and laughed.

* * *

Maddie sat cross legged across her bed. She had her phone in her hand texting. She looked up in annoyance when she heard someone step into her room. "What do you want, mom?"

"You know I'm really bummed about that concert. I was really looking forward to doing something just the two of us. Dad gets alone time with you when you two do driving lessons. I feel like it's been forever since we've done something just the two of us." Rayna played it up a little bit for Maddie's benefit.

"I told you that I have plans, mom." Maddie sighed.

"Do these plans include Colt? I saw you two this morning. Why didn't you just tell us?" Rayna asked.

"How was I supposed to tell you? I know that you don't like Colt." Maddie reasoned with her.

"It's not that I don't like him I just don't think he has the best judgment. Remember the Maddie Claybourne video or the party ya'll threw?" Rayna corrected her.

"I don't get what the big deal is. It's not even like you're with Luke anymore so it doesn't matter." Maddie crossed her arms over her chest.

"The big deal is you lied to us about it, Maddie." Rayna pinched the bridge of her nose.

"God, you are such a hypocrite. Where do you think I learned it from, mom? You lied to me my whole life about who my father was and then you were fooling around with dad when you were supposed to be with Luke." Maddie was just being difficult.

"That's a conversation that we can have, but you need to be respectful about it." Rayna kept her voice even.

"I don't respect you." Maddie spit out.

"Then the natural consequence of that is you'll be missing that concert." Rayna turned on her heel and walked out of the room.

"Deacon, I don't know what we are gonna do with her. She wanted us together so badly and she got that, she wanted a record deal and she's got that. I honestly don't know what else could possibly be wrong with her." Rayna leaned on her elbows on the kitchen counter.

"I'm not makin' excuses for her, but she's a teenage girl, Ray. Bev and my momma used to go at it all the time for no good reason at all. Of course that wasn't when Paul was around. They saved that for when he'd stay gone for weeks and months at a time with one girlfriend and then the other." Deacon stepped behind her and rubbed her shoulders.

"I'm so out of my depth here. By the time I was this age my momma was gone and I guess I don't know how to relate to Maddie anymore. You seem to be the only person who can get through to her. Babe, I'm so grateful for that I really am, but I miss my little girl. We used to be close she used to tell me things." She leaned back into him.

"Mom," Maddie said meekly from the entryway.

Rayna turned to look at her. "Maddie,"

"I'm so sorry, mom. I didn't mean a word of what I said to you. I was just scared to tell you about Colt. And sometimes I feel like I ruined things between us forever when I found out that Deacon is my dad. I guess it's just easy to push you away than feel like you hate me." Maddie bowed her head.

"Come here, baby girl," Rayna opened her arms to her.

Maddie went over and hugged her.

"First of all I appreciate the apology. You don't ever have to be scared to tell daddy and me anything. It doesn't matter what it is we are always gonna love you. You didn't ruin anything between us Maddie if anyone did it was me because I didn't tell you the truth. I'm glad you found the damn DNA test. If you hadn't we might not have the family that we have now. There's nothing that you can ever do that's so bad that I won't still love you." Rayna told her.

"I know that I'm a pain and I'm sorry." Maddie snuggled against her mother.

"It's alright, I'll always forgive you no matter what. I'm your momma that's my job." Rayna kissed the top of her head.

"Why don't you two go do something together tonight and I'll stay in with the boys?" Deacon suggested. He knew that they needed their time alone together.

"You sure, babe?" Rayna asked him.

"I'm positive. Go on now. Maybe I want ya'll women out of my hair for the night. I can sit here and catch a baseball game with my boys." He grinned at them.

"You're the best, babe." Rayna smiled at him.

* * *

"I can't believe I let you two drag me to this." Deacon grumbled the next night. They had come to see Layla open for Jade St. John.

"Babe, you complain more than a woman sometimes." Rayna shook her head at him.

"That's rich comin' from the woman who just spent two hours gettin' ready and we are still runnin' a little late." He scoffed.

"Oh my God, I can't be seen in public with you two if you're going to argue like this." Maddie tried to act like she didn't know them.

"I'm gettin' us t-shirts for the next time we all go out together and they are gonna say Maddie's parents on them in neon letters." Deacon laughed.

"Dad, please just stop." Maddie begged him.

"I need to go find Layla and talk to her before she goes on. Can you two behave yourselves until then?" Rayna asked them.

"I'm behaving talk to your husband." Maddie arched her eyebrow.

"Ok, I'll behave." Deacon threw his hands up in a sign of surrender.

The pair stood around watching the roadies get the stage ready while they waited for Rayna.

"I should probably try to find Colt soon." Maddie said.

"I get it you're too cool to be seen in public with your dad." Deacon winked at her.

"Dad, that's not it and you know it." Maddie told him.

"Alright, I got her all squared away." Rayna said as she rejoined them. Her shoulders were tense.

"Everythin' alright?" Deacon asked her.

"Everything is fine. It's nothing for you to be worried about anyway, just a minor annoyance." Rayna assured him. She looked over and saw Colt lurking. "You can come on out now Colt she's all yours." She laughed.

"Maddie, I got you something." Colt showed her a cookie.

"Thanks, Colt." Maddie hugged him.

"Son of a bitch. I told them this damn amp was broke the last time they tried to use it." JC pulled an amp off the stage and sat it up against the wall. "Oh, well it's someone else's problem now."

"Jimmy, what are you doin' here? I thought you had a thing tonight." Deacon addressed the young man. He called him by his given name more often than not.

"Yeah, I have a gig tonight. I drew one of the last slots. So, I had time to do set up, but I'm not tearin' it down tonight." JC explained. He looked away quickly when he saw Maddie with Colt. He grabbed his guitar case. "That cowboy better have remembered my hat if not my beer is on him all night." He grumbled about Will.

"Boy, you gotta stop puttin' so much on yourself you're gonna burn out." Deacon advised him.

"Gotta have food, gas, and rent money." JC shrugged his shoulders. He tucked his dog tags back into his shirt. They had fallen out when he'd bent over.

"Where are you playing tonight?" Maddie finally attempted conversation with him.

"It's one of those unorganized organized things. I'm playin' at the warehouse tonight. I texted you about it. It's no big thing it's a two song set." JC looked everywhere, but directly at her.

"You gonna do that new one you were working on?" Maddie asked.

"I don't know I don't think it sounds right yet." JC replied.

"Well, hell, son, you're standin' in a room full of musicians right now. Try it out on us." Luke piped up.

"Alright, I can do that." JC took his guitar out of the case and put the strap around his neck. _"I was fifteen when my daddy's old man caught me halfway through my first beer. He laughed so hard when my face turned green he said you come from a long line of sinners like me. Now me and brother go to see him sometimes, but he don't have much to say anymore so we sit on his headstone with a fifth Jack D here's to a long line of sinners like me. La di da di da la di da da di I come from a long line of sinners like me."_

Deacon smiled proudly.

"One of yours?" Rayna whispered and he nodded.

" _My momma had a soft spot for a hell raisin' boy so she had two more just like him. It takes an angel to raise a family that comes from a long line of sinners like me. Well now maybe who knows one day I'll settle down and give my dad a grandson of his own and when the doctor smacks him he'll probably take a swing 'cause he'll come from a long line of sinners like me. La di da di da la di da da di I come from a long line of sinners like me."_

" _On the day I die I know where I'm gonna go me and Jesus got that part worked out. I'll wait at the gate 'til his face I see and stand in a long line of sinners I'll stand in a long line of sinners like me. La di da di da la di da da di I come from a long line of sinners like me. La di da di da la di da da di here's to a long line of sinners like. I come from a long of sinners like me."_ JC looked up once he had finished singing. "It'll hopefully sound better than that with a band."

"There ain't a damn thing wrong with that song, son." Luke nodded his head impressed.

"Thank you, Mr. Wheeler." JC replied politely.

"JC, that's what I'm looking for when I tell you about depth. Now try that with a song that isn't Deacon's." Rayna told him.

"I'm workin' on it." JC assured her.

"Deacon, you wouldn't be interested in sellin' me that song would you?" Luke asked.

"No, the only reason I let him have it is because I wrote it with his daddy. That's Vince's boy." Deacon would let that song sit and rot before he gave it to Luke.

"Small world, your daddy was one of the best drummers in the business when we were comin' up together." Luke shook his hand.

"JC Grayson, nice to meet you." JC smiled politely.

"Text me directions as soon as I hear Layla's set I'll head over." Deacon told him.

"Great, I'll have the cowboy and the exes save you a seat." JC clapped him on the back. He put his guitar back in the case.

"See you there, my man." Deacon patted his back.

"Break a leg, partner." Maddie smiled at him.

"Thanks," JC grinned.

"You'll do great." Rayna told him.

"Alright, ya'll take these tickets and go have fun." Luke gave Colt the concert tickets.

"Thanks, dad." Colt grabbed Maddie's hand.

"What do you say after we see Layla play we go have a date?" Rayna asked Deacon once they were alone.

"I think that sounds like a good idea, but what about Maddie?" Deacon had a pretty valid point.

"We can come back and get her. Or we can see if Luke will give her a ride home. I know that you really don't want to be here and you much rather have gone off with JC just now." She knew this music wasn't his cup of tea it wasn't even hers for that matter.

"Sounds like a good plan to me, babe." He wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"You've been so great the last couple of days. More so than usual and I'm so grateful for you." She leaned against him.

"That's what I'm here for, babe." He kissed on her neck.

"You better stop that or we will never even make it out of this arena." She warned him.

"So? It wouldn't be the first time that we've been in a utility closet here. Maybe they finally fixed the lock on the janitor's closet. At least I hope they did after the last time that Buck walked in on us." He rubbed his beard against her neck.

She ground against his hips teasingly. "You need to go call my sister and check on your sons. Make sure that her and Bucky aren't ready to sell Jayme to the highest bidder."

"How do you expect me to concentrate with what you're doin' right now? I'm sure they are fine. Jayme gets that difficult streak from his momma Tandy can handle that just fine." He pulled her hips flush against his.

"You are so payin' for this later, darlin'. You know that I can tease you a lot worse than you can ever tease me." She warned him.

"Bring it on, I can take it." He whispered in her ear. He pushed her away from him and smacked her ass playfully.

"Just you wait." She smirked deviously at him.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter for you guys. Don't worry this little teenage love triangle is far from over it's just starting to heat up. I've got some pretty good stuff in store. Don't forget we've still got Deacon's father lurking around somewhere in need of a liver. Until next time please review.


	26. Chapter 26

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. The songs used in this chapter are To the Moon and Back by Luke Bryan, Cattleman's Gun by Dean Brody, Saving Amy by Brantley Gilbert, and Don't Tell Momma by Gary Allan.

* * *

Chapter 26

" _Through the dirt and the gravel through the years and the miles. Every road that you travel through the tears and the smiles. Through the clear and the muddy through the thick and thin the quiet nights and the howling wind. Through the good and the ugly the blue and the black to ends of the earth to the moon and back."_

" _Through all of the words the mean and the kind through the strings that unravel and the ties that bind. From the crazy and the different to the more of the same from the coast is clear to a hurricane. Yeah I'll be right beside you on a roll or off the tracks to the ends of the earth to the moon and back. To the moon and back."_

" _Through the bitter and the sweet the cold and the fire the lonely cotton sheets and the burnin' desire. Until our song is over 'til the stars all fade to black. I'm gonna love you to the ends of the earth to the moon and back. Yeah, I'm gonna love you all the way to the moon and back. To the moon and back."_

" _That was Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne with their new hit single To the Moon and Back. The couple has scored yet another number one hit with this outing. It seems anything they touch together turns to gold."_ The radio announcer spoke.

" _And he can't even be accused of being Mr. Rayna Jaymes. Deacon Claybourne is on fire right now. His new solo album is due out soon. Who knew that he made such a great front man? It makes you wonder why he wasted so many years playing second fiddle to the Queen of Country."_ Another announcer said.

Lamar reached over and flicked his radio off. He heard what he wanted to hear and he didn't need to listen to anything else.

"I never took you for the type to be a big fan of country radio." Alfred stood in the doorway of his boss's den.

"Alfred, what do you have for me?" Lamar ignored Alfred's comment.

Alfred threw a file down on his desk. "I dug into the matter that Conrad needed to know about and it's all in there. Long story short there is a federal investigation into the woman in question and they have him on tape at her house."

"Teddy, you learn your lessons the hard way. I don't know what I'm going to do with you. Simple minded idiot. I can't believe I ever thought he was a good choice for my daughter." Lamar shook his head irritated.

"What do you want me to do about this boss?" Alfred asked.

"I don't want anything done yet. I want a minute to think about this." Lamar replied. He had to think of a way to work this situation to his advantage before he did anything about it.

* * *

"Let this meetin' of Highway Sixty-five's baby artists at Deacon Claybourne's House of Wayward Musicians commence." Gunnar announced as he sat several pizza boxes in the middle of the coffee table. The Triple X's were now officially just the exes since Avery had to quit the band for the sake of his daughter.

"Gunnar, how many times do I have to ask you not to make the group awkward?" Scarlett rolled her eyes at her boyfriend.

"Gunnar, is just awkward by nature as a group we've all accepted that and it's time to move on." Will came to his defense sort of.

"Will, I'm glad that you just made yourself the center of attention. You need to spill details about how things are going with you and a certain someone." JC and Will had quickly become very close.

Will pointed with his eyes to Maddie. "Not now, JC."

"Come on, Will, she's one of us now. It'll go no further than here." JC waved off his concern. He grabbed a slice of pizza and started eating.

"What are you guys talking about?" Maddie asked.

"Maddie, uh, if you're gonna be even a part of our group here then there is somethin' that you need to know and I need to know that it won't go any further than here." Will spoke nervously.

"I promise not to say anything to anyone." Maddie swore to him.

"Uh, I'm gay, Maddie. For obvious reasons I don't go around advertising it. I'm not sure if your mom knows or not, but your dad knows." Will found it easier to protect his secret if he had his friends in his corner.

"Will, take it from me my mom isn't gonna care. At the risk of sounding like her and my dad that's your truth and how you tell and who you tell it to is up to you." Maddie replied easily.

"It turns out Deacon's Man Wisdom and Words to Live By is hereditary." Will chuckled.

"Now that we've addressed that tell us how things are going with Kevin." Scarlett urged him.

"They're goin' we are doin' things on the down low until I decide I'm ready to come out." Will shrugged his shoulders. He grabbed some pizza and started eating so he didn't have to answer anymore questions.

"Now, that that has been covered we need to get down to business. Since we've all listened to Deacon's open love letter to Rayna on repeat several times and have learned from it. We need to make sure that we all have at least two songs squared away for that Highway Sixty-five showcase that we have coming up." Gunnar made himself a plate.

"Is that what ya'll are callin' my album?" Deacon walked into the house.

"What are you doing here, dad?" Maddie asked.

"Um, our boss suggested that I should come over here and see if anyone needs any help." Deacon answered her.

"Yeah, we are callin' it an open love letter to Rayna. All your songs are always about a girl. It doesn't take a genius to figure out which girl." Will pointed out.

"What did you say?" A lightbulb went off in Deacon's head.

"I said all your songs are about a girl." Will repeated himself.

"That's it, that's the name of my album. About a Girl. That's the only thing that's been holding up the release since I finished it. Ya'll be productive I'm gonna get out of your hair and let you do what you need to do. You don't need my hoverin' around. You've got this. You know what you need to get your songs ready. If she calls lookin' for me I was here and then I left." Deacon turned on his heel and left.

* * *

"Excuse me," JC carried two beers in his hands and maneuvered his way around some people. He had played at some small outdoor music thing just for fun and it had pretty much dissolved into drunken frat party.

"No problem," Layla smiled at him. She had broken free from Jeff for the night and was being normal for a change. "Hey, you're JC aren't you?"

"Yeah, JC Grayson." JC gave her a charming smile.

"Layla Grant, I know you from Highway Sixty-five don't I? You're the roadie slash guitar guy that hangs around with Deacon aren't you?" She flirted with him a little bit.

"That's me, I'm actually signed to Highway Sixty-five too." He laughed good naturedly.

"I caught your set tonight it was really good." She complimented him.

"Thanks, you're really good too. Your sound is not at all what I'd expect from someone who looks like you and that's a good thing." He took a sip of beer.

"I had to go through a lot to get to this point." She sipped her drink as well.

"I know that you used to be married to my buddy Will. And you hear talk in this town. I don't put much stock in it unless I hear it straight from the horse's mouth." He sat one of his beers down on the table next to him.

"So, if I wanted someone to do some guitar work or a duet would you be open to that?" She asked him.

"For sure I'd be open to that. Or if you ever wanted to write together or anythin' like that. We have little impromptu powwows all the time to write together. If it won't be weird for you to be around Will." He offered.

"That would actually be really great." She agreed.

"Alright, just let me know." He blushed a little bit. He reflexively moved out of the way when he felt someone try to walk behind him.

"JC," Maddie slurred drunkenly.

"Maddie, what are you doin' here?" He groaned inwardly.

Layla didn't miss the flash of pain behind his coffee colored eyes when he looked at Maddie.

"Colt and I came to check out the music and I can't find him right now." Maddie tried to focus on what he was saying but her head was fuzzy.

"Hey, Cross Eyed Cricket, how much have you had?" He laughed at the cute little pout on her face.

"I don't know two or three." Maddie swayed on her feet. That told JC it had been more like five or six.

"That'll do it. Good thing for you that I've only had a sip." He put both beers down. "Layla, you're welcome to those it's been a pleasure, but I need to make sure nothin' happens to her."

"Go on, I completely understand." Layla assured him.

"JC, you don't have to do that. I'll just go find Colt." Maddie told him.

"Not a chance, I'll help you look for him, come on." He wrapped around her waist to support her.

They walked around for about twenty minutes, but couldn't find any sign of Colt.

"It's still pretty early. Let's go get you somethin' to eat and then I'll take you home." He guided her towards a diner.

* * *

In hind sight maybe feeding Maddie on top of alcohol hadn't been the best idea in the world. JC held her hair back while she emptied the contents of her stomach in an alley. When she finished throwing up he got her in his truck and drove her home. He half carried her up the front porch and he had to knock on the door because it was beyond him what she had done with her keys.

"Bring her on inside, JC." Rayna had an exasperated look on her face.

"Just so we are clear I didn't do this to her. I found her and took care of her." JC said before he could be accused of anything. He helped her inside of the house.

"I believe you, sweetie. Thank you for being there for her." Rayna was grateful that he had been there.

"She's probably gonna feel pretty crappy in the mornin' I tried to feed her, but it didn't stay down." He informed her.

"Jimmy, how did you end up with her?" Deacon looked ten different types of pissed. He scooped Maddie up into his arms.

"Daddy, please don't be mad at him he rescued me. And don't be mad at me either my head hurts too bad." Maddie groaned.

"Don't worry I'm not mad and I don't have to punish you for this. The hangover you have in the mornin' is gonna be punishment enough." Deacon carried her up to her room.

"I'm just glad I was there. I don't even know what Maddie was doin' there with him. The little punk got her drunk and ditched her." JC fumed.

"I bet Deacon is gonna say something very similar to that and I'll tell you what I'm gonna tell him. Colt didn't force her to drink anything. That being said he shouldn't have disappeared and left her to fend for herself." Rayna sighed loudly.

Deacon came back down the stairs and enveloped JC in a huge hug. "Thank you for takin' care of my little girl. I oughta kill that little asshole for getting' her drunk and leavin' her alone."

"I was a little shocked when she bumped into me. I would have invited her to come watch me play I always do, but I didn't think it was a crowd she needed to be around. Typically, Belle Meade Princesses don't do well in places like that." JC blushed when he realized what he said. "I didn't mean that the way it sounded."

"Rayna was and still is and so is Maddie it's ok. You didn't mean it as an insult like my sister does when she says it." Deacon reassured him.

"I should get goin' I need to be rested for that showcase tomorrow." JC stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"Thank you again for looking out for her. Something bad could have happened to her without you there." Rayna hugged him.

"No problem, she's my friend that's what you do for your friends." JC shrugged his shoulders to say that it didn't matter. He bid them both goodnight and left.

"What do you want to do about her?" She asked.

"I don't know. I know she's gonna have a killer hangover in the mornin' and I think that might be punishment enough. I'm torn, Ray. On one hand she's a teenager and she's gonna experiment with drinkin' we've all been there and done that. The difference is I'm an alcoholic and she has those genes. Then it's entirely possible that she's one of those people who can drink and be fine. I feel like there should be a lecture in there somewhere, but we also told her that she could tell us anythin' and as long as she was honest she wouldn't have to fear bein' in trouble." His nerves were jangled. He ran his hands through his hair.

"Babe, she's not you. She's got my genes in her too. I say we let the hangover do the talking this time." She wrapped her arms around him.

"You're right I left a glass of water and some Tylenol on her nightstand." He sat down on the couch and pulled her into his lap.

"I think she is our payback for every bad thing we did as teenagers." She ran her hand along his jawline.

"If this is all she does that we have to worry about then I think we are still in pretty good shape." He rubbed her back.

"Speaking of our teenage years. Wanna make out like we're in high school again until the twins wake up to be fed in fifteen minutes?" She shifted around straddled his lap so that she was facing him.

"Sounds like the best offer I've had in the last few minutes." He kissed her and ran his hands over her body.

"You've been getting other offers?" She ran her fingers through his hair.

"Oh yeah, I get other offers all the time." They both knew that he was blowing smoke.

"Since I'm the best offer you've had lately I'm gonna assume that no one else knows what kissing you here does to you." She kissed his neck. "Or here," She trailed kisses along his jawline. She gave a satisfied smirk when she felt him harden underneath her. It worked every time without fail.

"Nope, can't say that that was mentioned." He kissed the spot behind her ear that he knew drove her wild.

She laughed and rested her forehead against his when both the boys started crying at the same time. "They are a little ahead of schedule tonight."

"To be continued, baby." He slid out of from underneath her and went to grab the boys.

* * *

" _He rode into town one dust storm sheep skin cloak across his back. A preacher man with kind old eyes and a mystery for the past. He said he'd come to preach about the love of God. But he soon learned what they were missin' there was justice and the law."_ JC launched into the first song he'd written for the showcase.

" _There was a cattleman who claimed his clan owned all the land around. Any brave fool that might dispute he was quick to snuff them out. He'd say take my heed and you won't pay the price cause honor and a name ain't worth a damn if you don't have your life. Cause ain't nobody faster than this cattleman's gun I'm a rattlesnake on the trigger. Your last stand will be lyin' in the sand fallin' to the slam of my hammer."_

"I'm very impressed with his guitar work on this song." Deacon commented to Rayna. They had rented out the Bluebird for the night to do this. DJs from all the local radio stations had shown up as had music industry bigwigs.

"It's good, but it's still not what I'm looking for from him." Rayna replied.

" _So one man taught forgiveness while other taught suffering. The preacher said deliverance could be found down on their knees. He'd say I know you want justice and you want blood. Believe me when I say to you don't try and be that man's judge. Cause ain't nobody faster than the cattleman's gun he's a rattlesnake on the trigger your last stand will be lyin' in the sand fallin' to the slam of his hammer."_

" _One day a young farmer brought his sons to town for feed he noticed that the streets were quiet and he knew what that might mean. The smoke rose in this distance his farm burned to the ground. He let the fury overtake him when cattleman came back to town. Those boys ran out from behind the crowd and watched their daddy die. The big laughed and said look at that anybody wanna give it a try."_

" _Well the church doors opened with that black cloak flyin' behind preacher's fiery eyes. He said your ticket to hell is a comin' to you and I got a hollow point to give you the ride. And the only thing faster than the cattleman's gun was the preacher man's hand and finger he pulled iron from his side and let that bullet fly beat the rattlesnake to the hammer. While preacher embraced oh they finally understood under that sheep skin cloak of his was a history of blood."_ JC was pretty pleased with that song.

"It's a good song, Ray. It's actually a throw back to songs like El Paso." Deacon was impressed.

"It's good and it'll sell. I'm just saying I wanna see him dig down deep." Rayna corrected him.

"Let's hear this next song." Deacon told her.

JC without realizing that he was doing it found Maddie in the crowd before he started playing his next song. This song was slow tempo. _"Amy's got the letters I wrote my picture in a frame. She's had a year to let go, but she's still wearin' my ring. It hasn't left her finger since the night that I proposed. When I promised her forever before I took her home."_

" _But I never made it home that night and part of her died too. I've watched her losin' her mind and there's nothin' I can do. Sometimes she goes crazy screamin' out my name sayin' baby please come save me. I wish she knew that I'd do anythin' to kiss the tears right off her face tell her everything's ok feel her heart beat next to mine and make up for lost time. Oh, but, God I know I can't, but you can't let her live this. It's too late for savin' me, but there's still hope for savin' Amy."_

"For as much as he struggled with this song it came out nice." Scarlett said to Gunnar and Will.

"It turned out really nice." Will agreed.

" _Now, three years have gone by she's finally livin' life. And I still watch her sometimes just to make sure she's alright. She knows I'll always be there in her heart and in her dreams cause God I promised her forever and that's one promise I intend to keep. And kiss the tears right off her face tell her everything's ok feel her heart beat next to mine and make up for lost time. Oh, but, God, I know I can't, but you can't let her live this way. It's too late for savin' me, but there's still hope for savin' Amy."_ JC closed his eyes as he sang. He could hear the violins swell behind him. It hadn't been his idea to use this arrangement, but it worked well.

"Ray, he's killing it with this song." Bucky walked up beside Rayna.

"You know what this song is about don't you?" Rayna asked him. She reached out and took Deacon's hand.

"I know," Bucky nodded his head.

" _I'll kiss the tears right off her face when I walk her through these gates. Feel her heart beat next to mine and make up for lost time. God, I'll thank you every day for givin' her that ounce of faith that led her right back here to me and most of all for savin' Amy. Yeah, for savin' Amy. Thank you God for savin' Amy. For savin' Amy. Thank you God for savin' Amy. For savin' Amy, yeah. For savin' Amy for savin' Amy for savin' Amy. Thank you God for savin' Amy."_ JC blinked away the tears that were in his eyes as he stepped down off the stage.

"That, JC, that is what I've been looking for from you." Rayna praised him.

"That one was really damn personal and I had to dig deep for it." JC took a deep breath. He was still a little overcome with emotions.

"Jimmy, that was perfect." Deacon wiped his eyes with his knuckles.

"The best ones are always that personal." Rayna put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"JC, that was really great." Maddie walked over holding Colt's hand. Apparently all had been forgiven.

"I'm gonna go grab a soda you want one?" Colt asked.

"Please," Maddie smiled at him.

"Thanks, Maddie, I need a minute. I gotta go outside and take a breath. I'll catch up with you when I get back." JC walked out the back entrance.

"I'll go after him." Deacon followed him out.

"What's with him?" Maddie asked.

"That song was really personal for JC and well your dad too. They will be back. They both just need a minute." Rayna explained to her.

"He's just been a little distant with me lately. I haven't really had a chance to thank him for last night yet." Maddie replied.

"Welcome to the complicated world of relationships between men and women, Maddie. There's no telling what's eating at him. He'll let you know eventually. It's probably something that he doesn't want to talk about yet." Rayna didn't know what else to tell her. She had a pretty good idea of what was bothering JC even if he didn't know what it was.

"I don't think he likes Colt very much." Maddie said innocently. She had no idea how close she'd come to figuring out JC's problem with that statement.

"They are just from different worlds. It's not that he doesn't like him it's that they don't have that much in common. Give them time I'm sure that they will be friends." Rayna's eyes showed that she didn't believe herself for a minute.

* * *

"Jimmy, you ok?" Deacon walked out behind the Bluebird to find JC leaned up against the wall bent at the knees taking deep breaths.

"I'm fine, Deacon. I just needed a minute. That song was harder on me than I thought it would be." JC took his hat off and ran his hand through his black hair.

"He was so excited that night after he dropped Amy off. He promised her that he was gonna get his shit straight he just wanted one last night of partying." Deacon began talking. He was sucked into a memory so vivid it felt real.

" _Deac, I still can't believe she said yes." Vince threw a shot back. His dark brown eyes shone with happiness._

" _I can't believe she said yes to your sorry ass either. It's 'bout damn time you asked her. At the rate you're goin' Jimmy will be in college 'fore you two ever get married." Deacon drained his double bourbon and lit a cigarette._

" _I gotta clean my act up though tonight is the last time for awhile. You ever think 'bout askin' Ray? Deac, you've been with her longer than I've been with Amy. You wanna talk 'bout someone movin' slow." Vince ordered them another round and lit a cigarette of his own._

" _I think 'bout it all the time. I love her, but there ain't no way Ray's gonna say yes. I can't even make rehab stick. How can trust my commitment to her when I can't even commit to my sobriety? She deserves better than me. And I don't wanna turn into Paul." Deacon took a long drag off his cigarette._

" _They both deserve better than the two of us. She loves you though, man, she knows that you're tryin'. Here's a thought maybe we can go to rehab together maybe it'll stick for both of us that way." Vince suggested. He downed his new shot._

 _Deacon picked up his drink and gulped it down thoughtfully. "That's new in all the time I've known you you've never thought about goin' to rehab. You must really wanna change."_

" _I do I got a good thing goin' and I don't wanna mess it up. And lord knows Ray should have fired both our drunk asses a long time ago, but she keeps givin' us chances. We're the best and if nothin' else she deserves us at our best after all the messes she's bailed us out." Vince stubbed his cigarette out._

 _Deacon put his out and laid a two twenties on the bar. "Let's get out of here. You ok to drive or do we need to call a cab? Rayna would have my ass for drivin' right now."_

" _No, I'm good give me the keys." Vince held out his hand for Deacon's keys._

 _Deacon tossed him the keys._

 _The two drunk men stumbled out of the bar and into the rainy night. They climbed into Deacon's truck. Deacon made sure to put his seatbelt on._

" _Vinny, take it easy 'round this curb up here. The road is wet and these tires are shit, man." Deacon leaned his head back against the headrest and closed his eyes._

" _I've got it under control, Deac." Vince assured him._

 _The next thing Deacon knew he felt the tires slip and the terrain underneath them change from pavement to dirt. There was a boom as they plowed into a tree with full force. He managed to get his seatbelt undone and he crawled out of his window. He stumbled around to the driver's side. He had to use all his strength, but he managed to get the door open. He pulled Vince free of the wreckage._

" _Vinny, come on, man. You stay with me." He was down on his knees beside his best friend. He slapped his face gently to bring him around._

" _Deac," Vince was covered in blood and breathing shallowly. "Tell Amy that I love her." He struggled to grasp the words he wanted. "Deac, don't tell momma," it was getting harder to form. "Don't tell momma I was drinkin'." He finally got out and he took his last breath._

" _Vinny, no! Vince, you don't get to die on me." Deacon began doing CPR._

 _Deacon's eyes fluttered open. He closed them when he was assailed with harsh florescent lighting. He opened them again slowly and let them adjust to the light. The first thing he saw was a red haired head resting on the bed beside him. "Ow," he groaned._

 _Rayna's head shot up and she looked at him teary eyed. "I'll take ow, ow means you're still alive." She kissed his lips gently._

" _Vince," He rasped out. His eyes searched the room for his best friend._

" _Deacon, babe, I'm so sorry, Vince is gone." She let the tears she'd been holding back fall._

"Jimmy, I'm so sorry, I should have never let him drive that night. It was raining out and I don't know what I was thinkin'." Deacon apologized.

"I don't blame you stop blamin' yourself. Amy came to see me a few weeks ago and that's what brought that on. She loved him dearly and she just couldn't look at me anymore it was too big a reminder of him, so she gave me to my grandparents. I had a good life with them I can't blame her for that I guess." JC shrugged his shoulders. He tried not to let the things he couldn't control bother him.

"You boys ok?" Rayna walked out to check on them. They had been gone too long for her liking.

"I'm good, really. I just needed a breather." JC smiled to show he was ok.

"I'm good too, do you think I could steal the stage for a minute?" Deacon asked.

"Yeah, you're a Highway Sixty-five artist even if you are already a legend in this town. Go play one, babe." Rayna looped her arm around his waist.

Deacon grabbed his guitar and got up on stage. If an eighteen-year-old could get up there and sing something so deeply personal he could do it too.

" _I was headed north on highway five on a starry Sunday night when a pickup truck flew by me out of control. As I watched in my headlights he swerved left then back right he never hit the brakes as he left the road. I found him lyin' in the grass among the steel and glass with an empty whiskey bottle by his side. Through the blood and tears he whispered in my ear a few last words just before he died. Don't tell momma I was drinkin' lord knows her soul would never rest. And I can't leave this world with momma thinkin' I met the lord with whiskey on breath."_

It felt good to get that out after all those years. He found Rayna's eyes and locked on to them. He didn't know if he would be able to make it through the song without breaking down otherwise.

" _I still think about that night and how that young man died and how others sometimes pay for our mistakes. The last thing on his mind as he left this world behind was knowin' someone else's heart would break. Don't tell momma I was drinkin' lord knows her soul would never rest and I can't leave this world with momma thinkin' I met the lord with whiskey on my breath. Don't tell momma I was drinkin'."_

"Ray, I tell you what. I don't think I could get up and sing that song every night." Deacon went and threw his arm around her shoulders.

"I was just telling JC that Amy and Vince named him after us." Rayna smiled at him.

"They did poor kid." Deacon chuckled.

"It either means I'm meant for greatness or prison." JC laughed.

"Jimmy, that's not a comforting thought. Our sons are named Jaymes and Deacon please don't give me more of a reason to worry." Rayna begged him.

"If ride their asses like you ride mine it's greatness that they are meant for." JC gave an impish grin.

"It's only because I want you to reach your full potential." Rayna smacked him playfully on the back of the head.

"I better go find Maddie and apologize I was a little short with her earlier." JC excused himself.

"Oh, that boy has it bad for her and he doesn't even know it." Rayna sighed. She could see a situation developing on the horizon.

"You think so?" Deacon asked her sarcastically.

"Smartass," She rolled her eyes at him.

"Speakin' of boys, how are ours?" He asked.

"Daddy says that they are bein' perfect angels and that they enjoy spending time with their pawpaw. I think he's enjoying more than the boys are but I don't have the heart to tell him that." She took him by the hand. "Come on, there is a DJ that wants to talk to you."

"Alright, I'm comin." He grumbled, but he was loving every minute of it.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I told you I was gonna flip things around with Will a little bit now he's just a little more comfortable with being gay. Nothing ever really changed with him even after he came out. I also had to make Maddie less of a brat and add more depth to her character. Until next time please review.


	27. Chapter 27

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is Over When It's Over by Eric Church.

* * *

Chapter 27

"Babe, come on, let me have an album launch party for you. It'll be fun and you'll love it." Rayna argued with Deacon. She was in his office trying to talk some sense into him.

"I don't understand why we have to do an album launch party. I'm not as big as you are and it's not really necessary. Save the label's money and don't waste it tryin' to kiss my ass. You know that I ain't gonna go anywhere." Deacon laid on the play mat with the boys and he shook the rattles that hung down for them.

She kneeled down beside them and put both the boys on their bellies. "There they need to lay like that for a little while. Remember like I used to do with Maddie on the tour bus?" She rubbed her hand over their downy soft hair. "What did momma do to you boys? You're not used to this." She laughed at how confused they looked.

"Babe, it's not about kissing your ass or trying to keep you happy because I'm afraid you're gonna go somewhere. It's because you need an album launch party my reasons for signing you haven't changed just because we are married now. We need your album sales. You're Freakin' Deacon Claybourne you have a lot more reach than you realize you do."

"So, you're usin' me in other words? We may have to renegotiate my contract." He gave her a sexy grin. "Do what you need to do to make this album work. If that means you have to throw me an album launch party do it. Just don't expect me to get dressed up for the occasion."

"You were having one whether you wanted it or not. I already have the venue booked and Bucky has you booked on a couple radio shows. There's a reporter that wants to interview you at your convenience and you got a call from someone at Harley not sure what that was about. Bucky also said hire a manager or he will hire one for you." She laid out a laundry list of things that she had planned for him.

"I don't need a manager I can keep track of everything just fine on my own. Just tell Buck to start routing my calls through my office and I will handle it." He scoffed at the notion.

"Honey, babe, sweetie, I love you so very much, but this needs to be addressed. You have got to start looking at your emails especially if they are from Bucky. I can't keep playing go between with you two." She put her hands on his face.

"I don't check my emails at all." He corrected her. He rolled over on his stomach and smiled at the boys. "You two can't decide if you like this or not. Momma makes me do things that I don't like to do either."

"I know you don't and that's why you now have an assigned personal assistant to do it for you that's non negotiable, love. They are due for a nap in twenty minutes return the call to Harley then please." She got up off the floor.

"Alright, I'll return the call then I promise." He wasn't really paying attention to her though. He was too engrossed in the boys.

"I could distract you and Daphne for hours with those boys. You're both so fascinated with everything that they do. Flip 'em back over while you're still down there that's enough tummy time for right now." She loved being able to have the boys at work with them.

He flipped them both back over. "There we go my little pancakes you gotta get you cookin' on this side now." He rolled off the play mat and pulled himself to his feet. "Now, what Harley am I callin'?"

"You are calling Harley Davidson I have no idea what they want with you that's why you have to call." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Deacon, I will happily do your laundry, raise your children, grant you endless sexual favors, and pretend to cook your meals, but I am not your secretary."

"You gotta cut me a little slack, I've been out on leave with you and the boys. I will get on top of things and take care of it." He promised her.

"Come in," She called out in response to a knock on the door.

"Ms. Jaymes, we have a little bit of a situation. A guy just walked in and he says that he's Mr. Claybourne's father. The only problem is he's clearly drunk." One of the PA's reported.

"Ray, stay in here with the boys I've got this. If he's drunk he's gonna be violent. I know how to handle him." Deacon bolted out of the office without waiting for a reply.

* * *

"There he is there's my son. I've been tryin' to tell you people for the last ten minutes that Freakin' Deacon Claybourne is my son." Paul said belligerently.

"Paul, I'm not your son. What are you doin' here? I work here." Deacon could feel his temper rising just from being in the same space as his father.

"You are your father's son. I did some readin' on that there internet and I know that you like the whiskey just as much as I do." Paul smiled drunkenly.

"Drinkin' is real good for your failin' liver. You're drunk you're embarrassin' yourself and you're embarrassin' me. You need to turn around and walk out that door before I call the cops." Deacon did his best to keep his composure.

"You gonna call the cops? I'm sure you just rather shoot me again." Paul announced loudly.

"Deacon, do you need some help?" Tandy came over and put her hand on his arm.

"Tandy, just go wait in my office with Ray, please." Deacon begged her with his eyes.

"Ok, whatever you want." Tandy did as he asked.

Deacon reached into his pocket and took out his wallet. He pulled a hundred dollar bill out. "I'll give you this to walk out of here right now. It's a hundred bucks you can buy twenty cheap fifths with this or two of the really expensive ones. Go to the liquor store down on the corner and tell 'em you know me they will take really good care of you."

Paul slapped his hand away. "Damn ungrateful little bastard, after everything I've done for you. I kept a roof over your head and food on the table. You got all this now and all you can spare for your blood is a hundred dollars?"

Deacon was seconds away from knocking his lights out. His hands balled into fists at his sides. "What you did for me? The best thing that you ever did for any of us was stay away. At least then we could manage to scrape by without you drinkin' and gamblin' all the money away."

"Is this still 'cause I smacked you 'round a few times to teach you some respect? I should have smacked you 'round a few more clearly it didn't take." Paul took a step in his direction.

Deacon went to pull his fist back.

"I've got this I'll take care of it." JC walked out of the writer's room. He took the hundred dollars out of Deacon's hand. "Mr. Claybourne, come with me and we will go get you some medicine that'll make you feel better." He grabbed Paul by the arm and hit the pressure point on his wrist to get him to comply with his directions.

Deacon threaded his fingers through his hair agitatedly. He walked back into his office.

"Come here," Rayna held her arms open to him.

He stood firmly rooted in place with his jaw set in a hard line.

Rayna enveloped him in a hug anyway. "Baby, you're trembling. Please calm down." She was worried about him.

He was numb he couldn't think and he could feel the walls closing in on him. At the moment he was a scared little boy instead of a grown man.

"You're scaring me, Deacon. Do you want me to take you to a meeting?" Rayna searched his face for any outward sign that he had heard her.

He couldn't say anything to her words failed him. He didn't know how to begin to apologize to her for dragging her into this mess.

"Do you want to go home?" Rayna tried again.

"Rayna, step back and let me handle this. I don't think you can help him right now. I'm sure that he feels like his family dysfunction just exploded all over your office and he doesn't know how to apologize for that." Tandy could take a pretty good guess at how he felt.

"Babe, I don't blame you, you have to know that." Rayna still couldn't get a reaction out of him.

"Deacon, do you want to go sit in a bar with me and watch me drink again? Or do you want me to hire a hitman? Daddy knows very shady people I can make that happen if you want." Tandy offered.

Deacon cracked a thin smile at that one. His eyes flicked over to his sons when one of them cooed. He licked his dry lips. "Thanks for the offer, Tandy, but I'm gonna fine." He laid back down in the floor with them. "Babe, I'm sorry as hell that he came here. You worked so hard to build this and I don't want him messin' it up for you."

"Deacon, this is yours too. It's no coincidence that I started doing really well the minute that I brought you in. You have nothing to be sorry for. And you don't have to be embarrassed either. If it helps any you're nothing like him when you're drunk. You don't cause huge scenes like that." Rayna tried to make him feel better.

"No, Ray, you did this. I ain't takin' credit for your hard work. I'm just embarrassed 'bout the reaction that he got out of me. For a minute there I was the scared seven-year-old boy that he used to lock in the closet. It's just hard that's all. I'll be ok." He stretched out across the floor and crossed his ankles.

"You gonna be ok if I go back to work and leave you to deal with your wife alone?" Tandy tried to make a joke to perk him up.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I guess I can stand her for a little longer." He grinned.

"Seriously, think about that hit man." Tandy called over her shoulder before she walked out.

Rayna picked his phone up off the desk and dialed a number for him. "While you're done there you can talk to the Harley people. I'll make sure you're not disturbed." She wanted to give him something to do other than get lost in his thoughts.

"Ok, I'm callin'." He accepted his cell from her. "And, babe, thank you."

"I told you I'll always be here to save you." She winked at him and left him to his business.

JC was heading back into the building as she walked to her office.

"JC, my office please." She requested.

"I took him to the bar laid a hundred down and told them to let him drink until it ran out." He reported after he closed the door.

"Thank you, that's not the only reason I wanted to see you. Make yourself at home." She leaned up against her desk.

"Did I do somethin' wrong?" He asked.

"No, you didn't do anything wrong at all. I want to talk about what we are gonna do about your single. Saving Amy is an amazing song, but I would understand if you didn't want to use it." She got to business.

"I was thinkin' we'd use Sinners Like Me. I'd like to put it on an album, but I don't know that I could perform it every night." He said after thinking it over.

"Ok, I will schedule you some studio time then. We need to start thinking about an album. Kevin has really worked wonders with Will, but I think you'll have better luck with Deacon. You two seem to get each other on a deep level. You can learn more from him." She told him.

"That sounds good to me just let me know when and where you want me." He was pretty flexible and easy going.

"Keep tomorrow night open. It's Deacon's album launch party and you have to be there." She added.

"Does Deacon know about this or did you plan to just spring it on him?" He laughed.

"He knows about it now, he just doesn't know it's tomorrow night." She chuckled.

"I'll be there for sure. There's no where else that I have to be." He smiled.

"It's causal, but don't wear those holey jeans you wore over to the house the other day." She had a big job on her hands trying to dress the men in her life.

* * *

Deacon chewed on a piece of gum like he was taking all his frustration and anxiety out on it. He was dressed in his usual flannel and denim pairing.

"You nervous?" Rayna asked from beside him. She wore a pair of rhinestone jeans and a white peasant blouse.

"I'm not nervous I've been to these things before for you." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Exactly you've never been to one of these for yourself before. This is different than all the other times." She slipped her hand into his.

"You seem to forget that I'm better at this than you are. The only difference is you like these things and I don't." He reminded her.

"You ready to start making the rounds?" She led him over to a group of journalists without waiting for his answer.

"Rayna, why have you been keeping him under wraps all these years? About a Girl plays like the love letter that every woman dreams about getting, but never does. You're the lucky woman who gets this guy all to yourself. The Man I Want to Be and I Know How to Love You Now pair perfectly together and Route Three brought tears to my eyes." Kendra Clark wrote for the Tennessean.

"I wouldn't say that I've been keeping him under wraps. It's no secret that he either wrote or co-wrote most of my songs especially during the early years. I agree with you there I am very lucky to have him." Rayna put on her Queen of Country smile.

"There's a reason that those two songs were came one right after the other. The Man I want to Be is the prayer and I Know How to Love You Now is the promise. Route Three is an explanation of why there was anythin' to apologize for to begin with. There is a method to my madness." Now that he had been thrown into the deep end of the pool he could swim with the best of them.

"About a Girl is a very interesting title for an album. Where did that come from?" Kendra asked.

"I was talkin' to one of our artists and he says to me 'Deacon, all your songs are about a girl.' The name just sorta stuck." He gave a quick laugh.

"I think even more impressive is the fact that you did all the work on the album yourself. You wrote, scored, composed, and produced it. You're already known around town as the go to guitar man and song writer. What more is there for you to do?" Kendra smiled at him.

"I'm the talent scout for Highway Sixty-five and I get to help develop some very promisin' young talent. The backup guitarist on the album is a protégé of mine. And my insanely talented girls are runnin' around here somewhere we do some writin' together. I also have a set of adorable two month old twins who I can be distracted with for hours at a time. I have plenty to keep me busy."

"He doesn't exaggerate when he says hours. When I need a minute of alone time I hand him the boys and he's content." Rayna laughed softly.

"Kendra, it was really nice of you to come by tonight. If you wanna do an in depth interview or anythin' call the office and set somethin' up." Deacon politely excused himself. He rushed over to the person who had caught his eye.

"Little Sister, you made it." He wrapped Sadie in a bear hug.

"I wasn't about to miss this for anything in the world. Congratulations, you've earned this. I am so happy for you." Sadie hugged him back.

"I'm really glad that you came. I was startin' to worry 'bout you. You look like you're doin' better." He pulled back from their embrace with a smile on his face.

"I am all that alone time and fresh air was really good for me. I had time to think and relax. I think the SS Minnow was more seaworthy than your boat, but it served its purpose. There has to be a song in there somewhere." She laughed.

"Have you made a decision?" He asked her.

"Yeah, you and Rayna were both right he shouldn't get to win. He's not takin' this from me." She told him.

"Don't tell her that she already thinks she's right all the time anyway." He joked.

"Don't you worry about your hubby getting all touchy feely with a much younger woman?" Jeff came up beside Rayna. He couldn't resist taunting her every chance he got.

"The fact that you even think that bothers me shows how little you know. I have nothing at all to worry about." Rayna rolled her eyes at him.

"That's right I forgot he's your loyal little lap dog. No matter what you do to him he keeps coming back happy for whatever scraps you'll throw him. I listened to his album and if you'd let him off his leash on the side of the stage by you sooner he could have been bigger than Luke Wheeler. Hell, he still could be with the right marketing. He has the talent that Luke doesn't he's just a showman Deacon is a triple threat." He tried to dig his way under her skin.

"Shut up, Jeff. Do you even hear the way you sound sometimes? Either you're too stupid to realize how you sound or you just don't care I can't decide which." She arched her eyebrow at him.

He smirked. "Deacon doesn't play to the moms and minivans crowd. You try to market him like that and this album will do just as poorly as the others did. What works for you isn't going to work for him. I was right when it came to Layla and I'm right about Deacon. Whether you want to admit it or not you need my help."

"Are you seriously standing there asking me for a job? I know that you have lost your mind." She walked over to the bar and ordered herself a drink. She couldn't believe some of the things that came out of that man's mouth sometimes.

"It's not just Deacon that I can help you with you know? You have a problem on your hands with Will and you don't even realize it." He didn't know when to leave well enough alone.

"I don't have any problems with Will. I'm not Edgehill I know how to handle my artists. Go make a nuisance of yourself with someone else." She took a healthy swallow of the double bourbon she'd just ordered.

"Hey, girls, where have you two been runnin' 'round all night?" Deacon smiled at Maddie and Daphne.

"We were just wondering if you would sign our copies of your album." Maddie told her father.

"Of course I will. Just let me find somethin' to sign 'em with." He replied.

Daphne produced a black permanent marker. "Here you go."

He took the inserts out of both albums and signed them. "There you two are."

"Thanks, dad," Maddie grinned.

"Yeah, thanks, Deacon." Daphne chimed in before they both scurried off again.

"Hey, Baby Brother," Beverly walked up to him.

"Bev, what are you doin' here?" He took up a guarded position with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Scarlett invited me and I promised to be on my best behavior. It's not every day that my brother puts out his own album and I couldn't think of anywhere else in the world I rather be." She sounded sincere enough, but she'd burned him before like that.

"I'm glad that you could make it. And it makes me even happier that you left your companion at home." He scanned the crowd to make sure that his father was nowhere in sight.

"He's off on a bender. He'll show up when he's done like always. I'm not too worried about him. It's not like he can do anymore damage to his liver than he already has. He knows he's dyin'. I guess he figures there's no reason to change his ways now." She explained.

He'd be damned if after hearing her describe their father in that manner he didn't feel a little bit of sympathy for him. He shook that feeling off quickly. "Yeah, he'll show up meaner than hell and the least little thing will set him off just like always." He quipped bitterly. "Have you seen Scarlett yet? She's 'round here somewhere."

"I saw her when I came in. She's savin' a seat for me. I wanted to come say hi to you first." She replied. "Deacon, he needs your help. I know he has no right to ask for it, but maybe salvation would change him."

"Not tonight, ok, Bev? He's tried his damnedest to destroy everything good I've ever had in my life. He's not destroyin' this night for me." He felt himself tensing up.

Rayna made her way over to his side and took his hand. "Hi, Beverly."

"Rayna," Beverly nodded curtly in her direction. "I should go find Scarlett. Just think about what I said, Deacon." She walked away before he could reply.

"She really doesn't know when to give up does she?" Rayna asked.

"No she does not. I wish that they could both understand where I'm comin' from. She's the one that wants him in her life she can figure out how to save him." He sighed.

"Don't let her get to you tonight." She reached up and kissed him.

"Girl, you're about a hundred proof right now. I think I'm drunk just from kissin' you." He laughed.

"Sadie and I may or may not have been holding court at the bar for the last hour or so." She grinned innocently.

"Lord help me. That means I'm gonna have a drunk wife and two babies to take care of tonight." He teased her.

"Pay backs are hell, babe." She laughed at him.

" _It's over when it's over ain't it baby ain't it? Rips you like a dagger can't it baby can't it? Wish we could do it over damn it baby damn it. We had it in the air but just couldn't land it. It's the first snap of a last straw where regrets out last the alcohol. It's a cold sweat in an empty bed and dreams are like a knife when you're hangin' by a thread. There ain't no maybe we can make it if we just play the right cards."_ Deacon decided to give an impromptu performance of the song he and Sadie had done for his album.

" _It's over when it's over ain't it baby ain't it rips you like a dagger can't it baby can't it? Wish we could do it over damn it baby damn it. We had it in the air, but just couldn't land it."_

" _It's a white flag it's a stop sign it's the last long drag on a Marlboro light. It's a long night of beatin' up the past knowin' the first light is gonna hit you bad._ _This ain't no gone for good drill or no goodbye false alarm. Yeah it's over."_ He and Sadie sang together.

" _Over," Sadie harmonized._

" _Yeah, it's over. It's over."_ He sang.

" _This ain't no better way we can make it work. It's a blank page when you're out of words. Yeah it's a flat line it's a heart attack yeah it's too far gone to be shocked back. It's a one way with nowhere to turn it's no brakes baby crash and burn. Ain't no map ever gonna bring us back from where we are."_ They sang together again.

" _It's just over when it's over ain't it baby ain't it? Rip you like a dagger can't it baby can't it? Wish we could do it over damn it baby damn it. We had it in the air and just couldn't land it."_ He finished the song singing softly.

* * *

"Baby, have I ever told just how distractin' you are?" Deacon asked as he tried to get the key in the lock. The girls had gone home with Scarlett and Rayna was draped all over him.

"You love it and you know it." Rayna whispered so loud she might as well have been screaming.

"Shh, you gotta be quiet the boys are probably sleepin' and your daddy is in there." He tried to quiet her.

"Well, this is quite the sight. I'm sure that it's been the other way around numerous times." Lamar commented when they walked in.

"How were the boys?" Deacon tried to ignore the dig his father-in-law had taken at him.

"They were perfect little gentlemen like always. They just had their bottles and they are down again." Lamar reported.

"Thanks for watchin' them for us." Deacon didn't really know what else to say to him.

"No thanks required. It's good for them to have a father that they can be proud of. I enjoy spending time with them." Lamar replied.

Deacon couldn't have sworn to it, but he was pretty sure that the older man had just paid him a compliment.

"Just be sure that you take care of my daughter tonight. I think you'll have more trouble with her than you will those boys." Lamar chuckled.

"I'll take good care of her I always do." Deacon was at the moment holding her up with his arm around her waist.

"Daddy, I'm fine there's nothing for you to worry about." Rayna slurred.

"I'm sure that you are. You're a Wyatt you can hold your alcohol." Lamar kissed the top of her head. "You two have a good night."

"You too, Lamar." Deacon locked the door behind him. "Now, let's get you up to the bedroom." He half carried and half dragged her up the stairs. She was making things a hell of a lot more difficult than they needed to be.

He got her jeans off of her and decided that that was good enough for the night. He tucked her in to bed and sat a bottle of water and two Tylenol on her bedside table. There was also a trash can next to her just in case she needed it. He put both the twins on his side of the bed for the night. He changed his clothes and climbed into bed next to her.

"Hey, babe?" She asked.

"Yeah, Ray?" He rolled over to face her.

"Do you think I held you back musically? I mean you could have been so much more if I hadn't insisted that you stay on as my band leader." She rambled.

"Ray, I was happy bein' there on that stage beside you. If I'd wanted to do more or be somewhere else I would have been. If that was the only way that I could be in your life I was gonna take it." He replied evenly.

"That's not true. We both know that you can't refuse me anything I ask and you never have been able to. I should have cut you loose, but I just couldn't stand the thought of not havin' you in my life." She moved closer to him.

"Ray, it's what we both needed and it's water under the bridge now. What brought this on?" He just chalked it up to her drunken ramblings.

"Jeff said some things to me tonight and it got me to thinkin'. He also said some things about Will too though so I don't know." She put her hand on her forehead.

"There's your problem right there. You're listenin' to anythin' that Jeff Fordham has to say. He just likes to spar with you, Ray. You can't pay any attention to him. Now, get some sleep you aren't gonna be a happy camper in the mornin'." He kissed her head.

"Hey, babe?" She said again.

"What?" He sighed. She got so talkative when she was drunk he'd be lucky if he got any sleep tonight.

"Why is the room spinning?" She groaned.

"Because you tried to find the bottom of a whiskey barrel tonight." He chuckled.

"Oh, babe, I don't feel so good." She made a gagging sound.

"Trash can, babe, trash can." He grabbed the trash can and held her hair back while she threw up.

Rayna woke facedown on the bed with a loud groan.

"Good mornin', sunshine." Deacon sat down on her side of the bed.

"Oh, God, my head is killin' me." She shifted around to her back and put her arm over her eyes to shield them from the sun.

"You had a lot to drink last night. You need to take your Tylenol and I have coffee for you." He helped her sit up and gave her the pills. He put the cup of coffee in her hand when she had taken them.

"You're too good to me, babe." She offered him a small smile.

"You've done it for me countless times I'm just repayin' the favor." He kissed her head.

A loud knock at the door and Elvis' loud bark in response caused her to grab her head. "Who the hell is that this time of morning?"

"I don't know I'll go see and I'll be right back." He left her to go answer the door and he came back up a few minutes later.

"Who was it?" She asked.

He dangled a set of keys from his finger. "The people from Harley had a motorcycle sent over. I finally got 'round to returnin' that call and they want me to be their spokesman. I didn't commit to anythin' yet."

"They sent you a motorcycle? 'Cause that's just what you need. I remember what happened the last time you got on a motorcycle. Your children need their father." She lectured. It wasn't up to par with her normal lectures because she was so hungover.

"They did they want to use Just As I Am in a PSA against alcoholism and I'm seriously thinkin' 'bout it. If it were a regular commercial I'd say no, but this is a good cause." He replied.

"Well, that's not so bad then, but you need to put that thing in the garage and leave it there." She told him.

"Just think 'bout how much fun we could have together on it. It would be so sexy to see you on the back of that back. Think about how close we would have to be and that black leather." He whispered seductively in her ear.

"Mmm, I'm not saying yes and I'm not saying no. Right now I'm going to get in the shower and you're more than welcome to join me." She planted a lingering kiss on his lips.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I had to bring Deacon's dad out to play again. Oh, Jeff I couldn't resist having him cause a little bit of trouble. Until next time please review.


	28. Chapter 28

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 28

"Deacon, you killed it with that radio interview this morning. I was very impressed. You handled it like the pro that you are." Bucky's voice filtered over the speaker's in Deacon's truck.

"Thanks, Buck, and thanks for keepin' an eye on the boys while I did that. I wouldn't have asked you, but Ray is meetin' with a distributer today and we had no one else to ask." Deacon replied.

"It's not a problem at all. Right now Tandy has them in her office. I have a meeting with Juliette in a few minutes." Bucky informed him.

"I'll be in office soon. I just have to stop by my old place and pick up my mail. Scarlett says she's tired of the huge pile of it that I refuse to come get." Deacon chuckled and pulled into the driveway.

"Take your time. The boys are fine. I'll see you when you get here." Bucky assured him.

"I'll see you then, Buck." Deacon hung up the call as he pulled into the driveway. He walked into the house and he could hear the sound of muffled voices. "Scarlett, you here? Jimmy? Gunnar?" He called out.

He walked to where the bedroom door was cracked open. He found Maddie and Colt both rushing to get dressed. "What the hell is goin' on here?"

Maddie looked like a deer caught in the headlights and Colt scrambled to gather the rest of his stuff.

"Get out," Deacon seethed. "I said get out!"

Colt hurried out of the bedroom with his clothes still askew carrying one of his shoes in his hand. "It wasn't what it looked like I swear. Maddie didn't even want to."

"You need to run away from me now." Deacon barked at him.

Colt took the opportunity to bolt out the front door.

"Dad, nothing happened I swear." Maddie said tearfully.

"You used the key I gave you to my house to skip school and you figured you wouldn't get caught since no one was at home." He ran his hand over his beard.

"I'm so sorry." She cried.

"Get in the truck now." He pointed to the truck.

* * *

Rayna knocked on the door of a fancy hotel suite. She wore dark sunglasses to help disguise her features. She dressed down in jeans, a t-shirt, and a jacket so as not to draw attention to herself.

"Can I help…" Beverly said as she opened the door. "Rayna, what do you want?"

"Can I come in?" Rayna asked in reply.

"You might as well you're probably the one payin' for this anyway." Beverly opened the door wider and allowed her to enter. "Daddy, make yourself presentable we have company."

Paul was stationed in the sitting area in front of the TV. "This is as presentable as I get. Keep your damn voice down I have a headache." He snarled.

"Your son's wife is here. I can only imagine that this is gonna be good." Beverly gave Rayna the evil eye.

"I only came here to talk." Rayna kept her posture relaxed.

Paul got up and put a smile on his face. "It's nice to finally meet you. You'll have to forgive my daughter she has the disposition of a rattlesnake sometimes. Come on in and make yourself at home."

Rayna plastered a stage smile on her face. "I don't think we've ever been properly introduced."

"I of course know who you are. Paul Claybourne I'm a bit of a musician myself. That was between my regular jobs." He kept the Cheshire cat smile in place.

"I'm gonna cut to the chase. What's it gonna take for you two to leave Deacon alone about giving up part of his liver?" Rayna was blunt.

"You have got to be kidding me. You may keep Deacon on a string like some puppet, but we are his blood you can't push us out of his life. Unless he sent you here to do that, because as usual he isn't man enough to handle it. He's my brother and I never ask him for anything, but I'm askin' him for this. The man is still our father no matter what he's done." Beverly raged.

"Deacon doesn't know that I'm here he would go through the roof if he even suspected it. He didn't abandon you like you think he did. How many times did we have Scarlett for months at a time to help you out? Deacon and Scarlett both have wanted to depend on you for a lot of their lives and you always let them down. He called you from rehab I don't know how many times and you never called him back." Rayna gave back as good as she got.

"I was sick. He did abandon me. He tore out town one mornin' and he never looked back or regretted it. By the time I scraped up enough money to join him you had your hooks in him and there was no gettin' him back. So yeah he owes us this. For years he's done everythin' that you've asked of him no matter how shitty you've treated him. If he can forgive you for keepin' his daughter from him and ruinin' his chance at a solo career sooner he can forgive daddy and help him." Beverly went right for the jugular.

"Bev, if I didn't know any better I would swear that you were in love with your brother with as possessive as you are of him. I'm not gonna apologize to you of all people for protecting my daughter. Maybe she won't have to fight her daddy's demons like Deacon has since I've known him." Rayna wasn't about to back down. She knew how much Deacon loved his sister, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out why sometimes. Beverly had a mean streak in her that she clearly got from Paul.

"Whether he hates me or not he's not gonna let me die if there is somethin' he can do 'bout it. Even when he was a little shit he'd buck up against me to keep the heat off his momma and his sister. He's always gotta be the hero. No matter how much worse it made it on him he would always step in. He'll do the same thing now he just doesn't know it yet." Paul's eyes were cold and hard. For as much as Deacon resembled him they were nothing alike.

"Here's my one and only offer. I think you'll find that that is more than enough to buy a black market liver and still have money left over." Rayna laid a check down on the coffee table. Paul's words had struck a chord with her though. She gained a better understanding of why Deacon had stepped in and gotten himself thrown in jail numerous times when men would hassle her. She strode out of the room without giving either of them a chance to reply.

* * *

Deacon paced back and forth in the kitchen like a caged animal. He couldn't go upstairs and face Maddie and he couldn't think straight either. So he paced like he was trying to ware a groove in the floor. Part of him regretted not killing Colt with his bare hands. There was something about that kid that he just couldn't stand. Maddie always seemed to get in trouble when she was with him. He was so keyed up that he had left the boys with Tandy.

Juliette walked in the kitchen door and interrupted his thoughts. "Hey, is Rayna here?"

"No, she's not here. She's meetin' with some distributers or somethin' like that." He answered her. "At what age do girls start havin' sex? I walked in on Maddie and her boyfriend and they were both half naked."

"Were they doin' it?" She asked.

"I don't know. We were both so embarrassed that we didn't say a word to each other the whole way home." He ran his hands over his face.

"Let me talk to her. Maybe I can be a cautionary tale." She offered.

"She's upstairs in her room." In the absence of any other ideas letting Juliette talk to her was the best thing he could come up with at the moment.

"They didn't have sex." Juliette announced when she returned a few minutes later.

"Oh, thank God." Deacon breathed a sigh of relief.

"You do realize that eventually she is going to have sex though?" She asked him.

"I don't even want to think about it. Thank you for talkin' to her. I don't think she would have opened up to me or Rayna like that." He hugged her.

"You can return the favor in fifteen years when I walk in on my daughter." She joked.

"If you walk in on your daughter in fifteen years there is a very good chance that it'll be with one of my sons." He laughed.

"Are you tryin' to give me a heart attack? Those boys look just like you there is no way any girl is gonna be able to resist them." She groaned.

"Let me try to help you with your problem. What did you need to see Ray about?" This problem he might be able to do something about.

"I need a tour I need somethin' to bring my career back. I can't be a washed up has been at twenty-five." She told him.

"Juliette, there's thinkin' 'bout doin' somethin' and then there is just doin' it. No one I know is better at that than you. You'll think of somethin' you always do." He replied.

"Is this what Avery refers to as Deacon's Man Wisdom? Because if it is it's oddly helpful." Her eyes lit up.

"Yeah they refer to it as Man Wisdom I have no idea what that is supposed to mean, but I gave up tryin' to understand 'em a long time ago." He shook his head.

"I just had a very good idea and I have to go. I will see you later, thanks, Deacon, you're the best." She kissed his cheek and rushed out of the house.

* * *

"Tandy, why do you still have the boys?" Rayna walked into her sister's office.

"Deacon had something come up that he needed to handle and he asked me to watch them for a little while longer. I didn't have a problem with that there are worse ways to spend my time than with the two most handsome men in the world." Tandy cooed at the boys. "How'd your thing go?"

"My thing went. I can't tell you if it went well or not. Let's just say I now understand why Deacon turned to the bottle and couldn't put it down easily. Let me tell you Paul makes daddy look like a saint. I get why Deacon doesn't want him anywhere around me or the kids." Rayna sighed loudly.

"You gave it your best shot and that is all you can do. This may have to be the one demon that Deacon has to face on his own to finally get some closure on that chapter of his life. I think he needs to come to terms with the fact that he's not his father and the only way he's gonna do it that is for him to face him." Tandy suggested.

"My head understands what you're saying, but my heart is conflicted. I'm scared that if he does that it's gonna open old wounds and he's gonna go back to his old habits. It was so hard for me to let go of the man he used to be and give him another chance. There's just way too much at stake now for me to let him risk it." Rayna looked at her boys as she spoke.

"I know that you're scared it's good to be scared it means that you have something left to lose. I haven't always been Deacon's biggest fan and you know that, but seeing him with you and the kids and the way that he looks at you and the way that he treats you I know that he isn't going to do anything to mess up what you have together. You need to trust him this time, babe. Let him surprise you with the man he's become." Tandy said words that she never in a million years thought she would say about Deacon.

"Tandy, one of these days you're gonna have to admit that you like him. I know that it's gonna be hard for you, but I promise it won't make me think any less of you." Rayna gave her a genuine smile. It seemed that her sister always knew just what to say to make her feel better.

"I don't hate him can't we just leave it at that?" Tandy replied.

"You are impossible. I'm gonna take the boys home and see what kind of mess their father has managed to get into." Rayna started gathering the boys' stuff up.

* * *

"Maddie, you and I can't avoid each other forever. We have to talk about this. I've been downstairs tryin' to think of the perfect thing to say to you, but it just won't come to me. With you I got thrown in the deep end of the pool and told to sink or swim. I haven't been here for much as your father. I've gotten to teach you to drive and help you develop your skills as a musician. One day I will get to walk you down the aisle and I'll get to teach my grandchildren to play guitar. But this right here is my defining moment as your father. So, here it goes." He took a deep breath.

"You're growin' up on me fast. That both scares and excites the hell out of me, because I just got here and it's already almost time to turn you loose in the real world. You're gonna make mistakes some of them will be minor and some of them you and I are gonna have to sit down and discuss just how wrong you were. The one thing that will never change I will always be there to catch you when you fall. As much as we are both gonna hate this tough stuff and wanna hide from it we can't and I'm glad we get to go through it together." He sat down on the bed beside her.

She threw her arms around his neck. "That was pretty perfect, dad. I'm so sorry I should have never skipped school with Colt like that. I don't even know what I was thinking. I didn't even want anything to happen."

"As hard as this is for me to admit you're gonna have boyfriends and those are things that you are gonna do, but at the appropriate time and not because you think it's something you have to do. It's ok for you to say no I'm not ready. Don't ever let a boy put that kind of pressure on you. If he does then he isn't the one for you and you need to send his ass packin'. So, here is what you're gonna do for me. So you understand the gravity of what you were messin' around with today you are gonna take care of the boys for a whole day and night by yourself. That way you'll know how difficult it is. That's all it takes is one moment of passion and you'll be a mother before you graduate high school. The difference the boy can walk away from it you can't." He'd given it a lot of thought and he knew he had to do something to scare her straight.

"I can do that. Does this mean that you're not gonna tell mom?" She asked hopefully.

"No," He shook his head. "No, it does not." If even thought about not telling Rayna and she found out she would have his ass. "Now, I'm gonna go. I love you and I only come down on you because I don't wanna see you throw your life away." He kissed her head and left her alone to her thoughts.

"Very nicely done, daddy. I don't think I could have handled that better myself. You kept your head and I'm so proud of you. I'm starting to think that maybe you were born to have daughters. You are so good with the girls." Rayna praised him. She'd heard his whole conversation with Maddie.

"I'm just makin' this up as I go along babe." He leaned down to kiss her. "How'd your meeting go?"

"You're doing a good job of it. I don't know yet time will tell." She put her arms around his waist.

"I almost killed that Wheeler kid today, Ray. Oh, I was so furious." He leaned his forehead against hers.

"I've had a day too, babe. Does that offer you made about a ride on the back of that motorcycle still stand?" She looked up at him with her blue eyes sparkling.

"Yes it does." He grinned at her.

"The boys are down in the nursery for a nap. I'll get Maddie to keep an eye on them. Teddy wanted to spend some time with Daphne today, so she is taken care of. You and I can make a night out of it." She let go of him and went into Maddie's room.

* * *

Deacon stopped the motorcycle in front of a wrought iron gate that was at the end of a long driveway. He put the kickstand down and got off.

"Deacon, what are we doing here? Why did you stop?" Rayna questioned him looking confused.

"You'll see in just a minute." He punched the code into the keypad and got back on the bike. He guided it down the drive and came to a stop in front of a huge farm house with a wrap around porch and a big lake out back. He got off the bike again and offered her his hand.

"What are you up to?" She asked him.

He walked her up the front porch steps and sat her down in one of the white rocking chairs that was there. "Welcome to our retirement plan, baby."

"Deacon, tell me you didn't." She gasped.

"I may have convinced the relator to put a hold on the property until I saw what you thought of it, but all I have to do is say the word and it's ours. It's two hundred and seventy acres of some of the prettiest land in Tennessee. It's close to everythin' we need it to be close to and there's no rush to get it ready or anythin'. If you don't like the house we can renovate it or start from scratch on any other portion of the property. What do you say?" He asked her. He was excited about this.

"Is this what you really want? Because if it is then I love it. You know that I always wanted a house on the water. It's got the privacy that we need. I can already see the boys and Elvis runnin' all around this yard. It's really perfect, babe." She gushed.

"Are you sure? You're not just sayin' that because I told you I don't feel at home in Belle Meade?" He wanted her to be sure about this.

"No, I'm not just saying that. This feels like home like something that is ours with no ghosts hanging around. I'm gonna need you to make a few concessions for me though." She grinned at him.

"What do you want?" He asked.

"I need a pool and a hot tub and a garage. If you can do all those things then I want you to call the relator and make the down payment." She told him.

"I'll make the call, but I'm not makin' a down payment. The money that I'm gettin' from Harley more than covers this I'm buyin' outright." He kissed her passionately. "Thank you, baby, thank you for realizing how much this means to me." He kissed all over her face.

"Deacon John, stop slobbering all over me like you're Elvis." She giggled. The sound of her laughter was like music to his ears. "The girls are gonna love this place. Daphne is gonna try to talk you into horse and I need you to not cave."

"Let me call the relator and get the ball rolling on this. It'll only take a minute." He kissed her again.

"I'm gonna call Tandy and Buck to see if they wanna do a double date for dinner tonight." She pulled out her phone.

"Am I having a stroke or did I just see my baby sister pull up and get off the back of a motorcycle?" Tandy just shook her head as Rayna and Deacon walked over with their matching leather jackets.

"I'm surprised she got on it. She always refused to let him get one. And she about killed him when he had that accident." Bucky replied.

"You're driving my baby sister around on a motorcycle?" Tandy addressed Deacon.

"The people at Harley sent it to me and I figured it would be a shame to let it go to waste." Deacon smirked at her.

"Claybourne party of four." Rayna told the hostess. "It is so nice to be able to get out of the house again without being hounded by the media."

"Deacon, you and I have a little bit of business to get out of the way. The Today Show called while you were out of the office. They want you to do an appearance they are open to doing it via satellite I thought that we could use a space at Sound Check to do it." Bucky reported to him.

"Yeah, let's do it." Deacon agreed. He knew that he needed to do album promotion no matter how much it got on his nerves.

"Also, they are in a bit of a bind at the Opry. The performer they had had to back out and they thought of you first." Bucky sipped his drink.

"I don't have anything else going on Saturday night. Tell them I'll do it." Deacon had stepped in as house band leader for the Opry for years. To him that was like playing the Bluebird it was part of him.

"Good, now that business has been taken care of we can actually relax." Rayna spoke up.

"Not quite. We have that thing for Teddy's music in schools program tomorrow night. Juliette is having some kind of crisis and we are gonna have to bid on the command performance for her. If we can get her a win maybe she will calm down a little bit." Bucky went on.

"She is just like having a third daughter sometimes. Yeah we will bid on that for her." Rayna agreed.

"Now we are done with business." Bucky concluded.

* * *

"Jayme, please don't do this to me. Why can't you be easy like Deac is?" Maddie spoke to her baby brother as she walked the floor with him. He was screaming at the top of his lungs. "I fed you, I burped you, I changed you, and I sang to you. I don't know what else you want. I promise that mom and dad are gonna be back soon." She sighed when there was a knock at the door. "I hope that's the gypsies coming to take you away." She opened the door without looking to see who it was.

"Looks like you're havin' a little trouble." JC leaned up against the door jamb. He tried hard to fight off a smirk.

"JC, what are you doing here?" She was suddenly self conscience. She was dressed in a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt.

"I came to see Uncle Deacon. I'm stuck on a song and I was hopin' that he could give me a hand with it." He explained.

"If you can help me with Jayme I will try to help you with your song." She bargained with him.

"Come here, big guy." He took the baby out of her arms. "Oh, you're ok. You tryin' to give your sister a nervous breakdown?" He rocked him gently and he started to quiet.

"Come on in to the music room we can work in there. If you can keep him quiet I'll do whatever you want me to do. How did you get so good with kids anyway?" She asked as she led him into the music room.

"I have a very unorthodox family so my brother and two sisters who are actually my uncle and two aunts are quite a bit older than me. Then I have an actual brother who is about seven years older than me. Vince was a little bit of a whore. Anyway I'm an uncle so I'm good with kids." He explained.

"Let's see this song." She held out her hand and he put a piece of paper in it.

" _Homeboy, come on home boy."_ JC and Maddie sang softly together an hour later. The boys were both finally asleep and they didn't want to risk waking them up.

"That's it that's perfect. I should have known that you'd be able to help me." He smiled at her.

"I'm just happy you were able to get Jayme calmed down. This was the least I could do for you." She smiled back at him. She went to say something else, but was cut off.

"Rayna? Deacon? Maddie? Anybody home?" Teddy called out as he walked in the kitchen door with Daphne.

"That's my other dad just stay right here and I will be back." She got up and went into the kitchen.

"Maddie, there you are." Teddy greeted her. "Deacon said that you weren't feeling good earlier." He sat Daphne's school project on the counter.

"I feel much better now." Maddie told him. She breathed a silent sigh of relief that Deacon had lied for her.

"We went out for ice cream and we went shopping and we got something for you." Daphne chattered excitedly.

"Hold on, here you go." Teddy handed her a blue Tiffany's bag.

"Oh my gosh. What did you do?" Maddie opened the box and found a silver heart necklace.

Daphne pulled her necklace out of her shirt. "I got one too."

"Just a little something so you girls know that no matter what you'll always be in my heart." Teddy explained.

"Thanks, dad," Maddie hugged him.

"You're welcome." He smiled broadly.

"He's like a car alarm tonight the least little thing sets him off." Maddie groaned loudly and laid her head on the counter when she heard Jaymes cry.

"You're alright you're just hungry that's all. Chill out, your buddy Jimmy is gonna fix you right up." JC bounced Jaymes around gently.

"Maddie, why is there a boy here if your mom and Deacon aren't here?" Teddy asked.

"Dad, this isn't a boy it's just JC." Daphne corrected him.

"JC Grayson," JC offered him his hand.

"Teddy Conrad," Teddy shook his hand.

"JC just came over because he needed help with a song that he was writing and dad wasn't here so I tried my best to help him." Maddie explained quickly.

"JC, if Jayme gets a bottle Deac gets a bottle they are on the same schedule." Daphne took her duty as a big sister very seriously.

"You better listen to Squirt, Jimmy." Deacon and Rayna had just come through the front door.

"Come here my hungry boy, momma knows." Rayna took Jaymes into her arms.

"Where's Bubba?" Deacon asked about Little Deacon.

"In the music room. He must not be starving yet. If he was he would be screaming." Maddie answered.

"Alright, I need to get going. I'll see you all tomorrow night." Teddy excused himself.

"Babe, can you go grab Deac and feed him please? I don't want them to get off schedule." Rayna did her best to keep the boys in sync.

"I've got him, babe." Deacon went to go get the baby.

"Maddie, you may want to leave the room I'm getting ready to do that thing that you think is gross." Rayna referred to breastfeeding the boys.

"Come on, let's go nail that song down, JC." Maddie grabbed him by the arm and led him off.

* * *

A/N: Here is the new chapter for you guys I hope you enjoy it until next time please review.


	29. Chapter 29

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are You Save Me by Kenny Chesney and I Need You by Tim McGraw.

* * *

Chapter 29

Deacon stood huddled off in a corner with his phone pressed to his ear. "Ok, that's a tired cry if you rock him gently and pat his little butt he will be out like a light in no time. If he's ready for a nap his brother is too. Just get them both down at the same time. My wife will be out for blood if those two aren't on the same schedule." He was checking in with the nanny they had hired for the night since no one else was available. She had come with impeccable reference, but he was still leery about leaving the boys with someone that they didn't know.

"Deacon, what are you doing huddled in this corner all alone?" Rayna came up and touched his shoulder.

He jumped like he had been shot and a sheepish look appeared on his face. "I was just checkin' on the boys and I didn't want you to know I was doin' it."

"Oh, babe, you have so much to learn." She opened an app on her phone that showed a live feed of their house. The boys were being tended to by the nanny and they were perfectly fine.

"So you're not mad at me?" He asked.

"No I'm not mad at you. I would think that there was something wrong with you if you didn't want to call and check up on them every few minutes. That's why I put the nanny cams up. That way we know what's going on when we aren't there." She explained to him.

"Now that that is settled. Let's go see what those girls are up to." He put his arm around her waist.

"Daphne I'm sure is fine. We should be more worried about what Maddie could be up to." She replied.

They found the girls harmlessly looking at items for the silent auction. For a change Maddie wasn't up to anything they needed to be worried about.

"I'm really glad that you guys could make it." Teddy said when he got a chance to talk to them.

"It's a good cause and I'm always happy to lend a hand when you need it." Rayna smiled at him.

"Like we had a choice in a matter those girls heard the words perform and they would have drug us here against our will if they had to." Deacon chuckled.

"Where are the girls?" Teddy looked around for his daughters.

"I think Daphne is off bidding on a pony." Deacon informed him.

"I wouldn't be surprised. I better go stop her." Teddy went off to find the girls.

"You wanna go walk the red carpet with me?" Rayna batted her eyelashes at him.

"I can't think of a single other thing I rather do right now." Deacon let her lead him away.

"That is one awesome guitar. I would give up one of my kidneys for a guitar like that." JC approached Maddie. He couldn't be in the same room as her and not attempt to make conversation with her.

"It is very nice." Maddie agreed with him. They were looking at a black Gibson acoustic guitar.

"I just wanted to thank you again for your help last night." He grinned at her.

"Don't mention it. You helped me with Jayme and I still owe you one for taking care of me the night I was drunk." She replied.

"That was nothin' I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if somethin' bad happened to you." He shrugged his shoulders to say that it was no big deal.

"You look good without the cowboy hat you should take it off more often. I like the scruff you're growing it makes you look older." She teasingly rubbed her hand along the stubble on his face.

"Thanks, I figured I would look presentable for the night. I even wore a shirt with a collar on it." He had his hair parted off to the side and he wore a red and white checkered shirt. He had a big silver belt buckle with an impression of a longhorn steer on it. His cheeks and chin were covered with a thick dusting of five o'clock shadow.

"You picked the shirt that looks like a table cloth, but you look nice." She laughed.

"Since I look so nice that means you gotta go walk that red carpet with me." He bargained with her.

"Sure, just give me a minute and I will be right there." She agreed.

"I'll be waitin' for you. Just come get me when you're ready." He went to go mingle while she took care of whatever it was she needed to take care of.

Maddie picked up a pen and put a bid down on the guitar.

"I should have known that you would be over here looking at guitars." Lamar commented. "You and Deacon have that in common."

"We do, it's very nice and well built." She replied.

"And like your mother you know how to appreciate a good guitar player." He added.

She looked at him questioningly. "I don't know what you're talking about, pawpaw."

"Not yet anyway. If you like it so much it's yours." He put a sizable bid down on the guitar.

"Pawpaw, you don't have to do that. I don't really need the guitar." She put up a protest.

"I meant the guitar too." He gave her a knowing smile.

When Maddie finally caught up with JC he was talking to Daphne.

"Daph, you walking the red carpet with us?" She asked.

"I already did with dad, but JC said I can with you guys too." Daphne replied.

"Look at you, ladies man, you're making the rest of us look bad. I can't even wrangle up one date and you've got two." Will joked around with the younger man.

"Some of us are a little more gifted in that department than others. Don't worry you'll get the hang of it one day." JC shot back.

"Miss Daphne, will you do me the honor of takin' a stroll down that red carpet with me?" Will bent down to Daphne's level.

"Sure, Will," Daphne looped her arm through his.

"I believe he just stole my other date." JC's brown eyes sparkled with laughter.

"That just means I don't have to share you this way." Maddie took his offered arm.

"So, how well do you know this JC guy that Maddie seems drawn to?" Teddy watched the teens on the red carpet.

"Very well. We were at the hospital the day he was born. His father was Deacon's best friend. He's a good kid you don't have anything to worry about." Rayna assured him.

"He's a boy and he's around our daughter I have plenty of reasons to worry." He scoffed.

"You don't have to worry about that boy. Maddie has a boyfriend. They are just friends." She replied.

"Just friends like you and Deacon have ever been just friends? She looks him the way you look at Deacon or how Deacon looks at you. I can't decide which one of you she took after there. Either way that's not a look of friendship." He corrected her.

"I know that and you know that. Maddie doesn't know that yet. It wouldn't be a horrible thing if it took her a little while to figure out that she feels that way about him. Like you said they remind me of me and Deacon. We almost burnt each other to the ground numerous times with our passion because we were too young to know how to handle it." She agreed with him.

"You two are standing across the room from each other right now and I'm at risk of being burned from standing next to you. I didn't think that anyone else on the planet was capable of having something that intense. I was wrong. I can see it coming." He marveled at the way her and Deacon could look each other across a crowded room and have it seem like they were the only two people there.

"Teddy, I know that you're freaking out because it's our daughter with a boy, but that's not the boy you have to worry about doing anything to her. Believe it or not that boy is prince charming. Worry more about the boy she is dating." She advised him.

"I have to go mingle we will finish this conversation later." He left her to go make his rounds.

"Oh, Deacon, the level of bad that you have it for that woman is ridiculous. You can't even be on the other side of the room from her without pining for her." Sadie didn't have to follow Deacon's gaze to know he was looking at Rayna.

"Stop bustin' my balls, Little Sister. I can't help it that she makes me want her all the time." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm now sorry that pursued conversation with you tonight. Ya'll make me sick with how cute you are and I think that you are worse than she is." She rolled her eyes at him.

"I may be guilty as charged, but she sure as hell ain't innocent." He defended himself.

"Whatever kind of shit you two are about to stir up don't. Be on your best behavior tonight." Rayna warned them.

"When have we ever not been on our best behavior together?" He scoffed.

"The one night before I found out that I was pregnant you joined us on one of the tour stops and you locked Sadie out on the balcony drunk for an hour because she dumped a whole bucket of ice down the back of your shirt." Rayna refreshed his memory.

"The way I remember it I locked her outside because I was tryin' to sober you both up and you were feedin' off each other." He corrected.

"Let's go find our table the girls are sitting with Teddy tonight. That should mean that I only have to manage Juliette and her personality, but we will see." Rayna gestured for them to follow her.

"JC, what in the world possessed you to leave the house lookin' like a mountain man tonight?" Scarlett asked her roommate.

"I guess the same thing that possessed you to let Gunnar out of the house wearing those ridiculously tight pants." JC took a pull off his longneck.

"You've got a belt buckle the size of Texas I don't want to hear you talk about anyone. I surprised that you and Will haven't gotten matching tattoos of the Texas flag yet." Gunnar pointed a threatening finger at him.

"Gunnar, you're from Texas too. I don't know why you talk about us like that." Will jumped in.

"If I were Gunnar I would be mad at you both too. I mean you leave him out of your weird little 'Texas Forever' secret handshake that you do." Maddie formed air quotes around the words Texas Forever. It seemed to be Will and JC's catch phrase.

"Did she just mock Texas forever? Because if she just mocked that we are gonna have to kick her out of the group. I don't care how insanely talented she is." JC wore a look of mock indignation on his face.

"JC, I'm pretty sure that your girlfriend just mocked our catch phrase. We are gonna have to do worse than kick her out of the group." Will said solemnly.

"He only wishes that I was his girlfriend and I'm not being kicked out of the group. I'm leaving the group and Scarlett, Layla, Daph and I are starting our own group. Right now I'm leaving the group temporarily because I have to go sit at the mayor's table." Maddie rolled her eyes. It wasn't that she didn't love Teddy, because she really did, but she was a teenager and she much rather hang out with her friends.

"Hey, Maddie, before you go." Will and JC both flipped her horns with their fingers. "Texas forever,"

"Layla, be a pro stop making googly eyes at the man candy." Jeff sighed when he saw that Layla was yet again staring in JC's direction.

"Don't be an ass all the time, Jeff. I wasn't making eyes at him he is a friend of mine. He's the guy that was singing on that recording I played for you the other day." She rolled her eyes. He could be such a child sometimes. If she didn't care about him she would have kicked him to the curb a long time ago.

"Oh, he's that guy? That kid is going to be huge and I have plans. Layla, get close to him befriend him sleep with him if you have to just stay in his good graces. You two could be an up and coming power couple in country music. Strictly for the press of course." His ever present evil smirk appeared.

"I tried that with Will and you saw how well that turned out for me." She reminded him.

"You know better than that this time, Layla. I sincerely hope that you wouldn't be stupid enough to really develop feelings for that pup. Stop questioning me and just do what I tell you." He sighed exasperated with her.

"Problem with that I'm Will's ex-wife and Will just so happens to be one of his close friends. There is some macho bro code that says you don't get with your buddy's ex." She informed him.

"Stop thinking, that's not what anyone pays you for. I've got this taken care of." He brushed away her concerns.

"And you're not getting paid to be such a jerk all the time." She spat back.

"Thank God, thank you, thank you, thank you. I'm so glad that she got to do that performance or there would have been no living with her. Maybe now she will go back to some semblance of normal." Avery was relieved he needed Juliette to get a win so she would relax.

"She can't be any worse than normal." Gunnar disputed.

"You would think that she couldn't get any worse and you would be wrong. She got on a plane and flew to LA to record the end credit song for that Patsy Cline movie on the spur of the moment. Not only that, but she forced Deacon to come over and help her write it." Avery informed him.

"That still isn't that crazy for Juliette. She's done worse." Scarlett threw out.

"As long as she isn't stealing nail polish, sleeping with married billionaires or saying that God doesn't exist I can deal with whatever trouble she decides to cause." Glenn had learned to just go with the flow.

"That makes the cow tippin' we used to do sound tame." JC chuckled.

"And you win for the most Texan statement made in the last ten minutes." Sadie had taken a shining to the young man and she liked to tease him.

"Texas forever," JC and Will whooped.

"New rule the next time someone says Texas forever I'm imposing a fine and that fine is burping Jayme." Rayna threatened them.

"Jayme and I are old pals. He's not gonna do anythin' that I can't handle." JC laughed.

"I'm gonna shut up now." Will and Jaymes had a contentious relationship. He liked to spit up on Will every chance that he got.

"That's what I thought." Rayna winked at him.

Deacon grabbed his phone quickly when it buzzed in his pocket. He thought it was the nanny calling about the boys. He smiled when he saw that it was his mom's attempt at texting him and he showed it to Rayna after texting her back. "I finally found someone worse than I am at this."

"Maddie and Daphne are trying to teach her you see how that's going. She told me that when I talked to her earlier. She Facetimed with the boys because she misses them and says she's gonna have to visit again soon." Rayna bumped her shoulder into his.

"Lord help me, what are you girls doin' to my sweet innocent momma?" Deacon laughed.

"Teaching her how to appropriately respond to messages. I shouldn't have to call you every time I email you to make sure that you read it and get back to me right away." Bucky had a hang up with Deacon not checking his emails.

"I've gotten better and you know it. I can't help it that I find these forms of communication informal and impersonal." It wasn't that Deacon wasn't capable of using electronics it was that he much rather handle things in person.

"I'm giving you a heads up right now that I'm scheduling you and I a meeting first thing tomorrow morning. I want to discuss the direction that we are going to take JC's album in. Sinners Like Me is a great single, but we need something else queued up and ready to go." Bucky informed him.

"Alright, Buck, we can do that." Deacon replied.

"Maddie, what did you need that guitar for? Between you and your dad there's about to be no space for anything else in the music room. As a matter of fact he still has guitars at his place and at the cabin. But, your pawpaw would give you the world if you asked him for it. I had to threaten him to keep him from buying Daphne a pony." Rayna put her arm around Maddie's shoulders as they walked through the parking lot. Daphne had wanted to spend the night with Teddy and Maddie had begged out of it.

"Actually, would it be ok if we stopped at dad's house for a minute? I have something that I need to do." Maddie carried the guitar Lamar had bought for her in the hard case that had come with it.

"Ask your daddy he's driving." Rayna got into the truck.

"Sure, Maddie, we can make a quick stop. And I mean quick. I don't think I like this nanny." Deacon climbed into the driver's seat.

"I promise it'll be quick." Maddie swore to him. She got out of the truck at Deacon's house and she took the guitar with her. She taped a not to the case and left it on JC's bed.

"Any reason for leavin' the guitar here?" Deacon asked when she got back into the truck.

"It wasn't for me. It was a thank you present for JC." Maddie told him.

Rayna shot Deacon a look and he smirked in response.

* * *

"Look at how handsome daddy is tonight." Rayna pushed the boys into Deacon's dressing room at the Opry.

Deacon wore a dark blue button up with a vest over it and a pair of jeans. "There are my boys. I was afraid ya'll weren't gonna make it on time." He smiled widely.

"It took us a little while to get out of the house. Jayme decided that he was gonna spit up all over his outfit." She told him.

"That sounds about right to me." He laughed. He picked both boys up and cuddled them to his chest. "Now don't you two spit up on daddy. He needs good luck cuddles from his dudes." He kissed them both.

"It looks like they both missed daddy a lot. Look at the smile on Deac's face. He is a big daddy's boy you are one of the only people who can get that smile out of him." She kissed his cheek. "You nervous?"

"Nope, this is far from the first time I've played here. I regularly lead the house band. I'm just excited." He put the boys back in their stroller.

"I'm so proud of you, babe. I always knew that you were capable of this." She cupped his cheek.

"I couldn't do this without you by my side, babe. I need you just as much as you need me." He took her hand and kissed it.

"Mr. Claybourne, you're on soon." The stage manager stuck his head in the door.

"Thanks, I'm ready." Deacon replied.

"Hey, JC, I just wanted to wish you luck. I know that this is your first night as my dad's bandleader." Maddie walked out on stage where JC was going over last minute things with the band.

"Thanks, I got my trusty new Gibson and I'm sure I'll do just fine." JC grinned at her.

"That Gibson does look pretty good on you." She grinned back.

"Maddie, thank you for the guitar you didn't have to do that. I would have scraped up enough money to get a new one eventually." He was touched by her gesture.

"I did have to do it and I wanted to. I owed you one we are even again." She blushed when she saw the way he was looking at her.

"I really appreciate it. I will pay you back." He took her hand and held it.

"If you get nervous up here and need something to focus on look over at me. I will be on the side of the stage the whole time." She echoed the words he'd said to her the night she made her Opry debut with Daphne. She laced their fingers together.

He tenderly brushed her cheek with the back of his hand. "I'll be lookin' for you in that case."

"I'll be there I'm not gonna give you the satisfaction of saying I broke a promise to you." She teased him lightly.

"You know me I'll tease you every chance that I get." The smile he gave her showed off his dimples.

"I know you will that's why I'm not giving you a chance this time." She bumped shoulders with him.

"Maddie, you coming?" Colt called from the side of the stage.

JC closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "You better go your boyfriend is waitin' on you."

* * *

"Yeah, I should go, but you're gonna kick ass tonight and I know it." She dropped his had guiltily and made her way over to Colt. She had turned her back just in time to miss the hurt flash in his eyes.

He turned his back to the side of the stage and pulled a note out of his pocket. Maddie's handwriting was scrawled across the page. _Jimmy, you're great anyway, but I think this guitar will help you become even better. Thanks for being my knight in shinning armor. Maddie._

Just seeing that she had used his given name had sent a shiver down his spine. For some reason it seemed more special coming from her.

" _Every now and then I get a little lost. My strings all get tangled my wires all get crossed. Every now and then I'm right upon edge danglin' my toes out over the ledge. I just thank God you're here."_ Deacon sang into his mic.

"Rayna, I think we may have a situation." Scarlett whispered in her ear.

"What's going on, Scarlett?" Rayna asked.

"Look for yourself." Scarlett pointed with her eyes to where Paul stood.

"I'll handle it." Rayna walked over to Paul.

"I don't want any trouble I just wanted to hear my boy sing that's all. I'll go before he knows I was here." Paul swore to her. He looked human tonight. He looked like a frail old man instead of a monster.

" _Cause when I'm a bullet shot out of a gun. Cause when I'm a firecracker comin' undone. When I'm fugitive ready to run all wild eyed and crazy. No matter where my reckless soul takes me baby you save me."_

"I guess I can't fault you for that. Listen to this song then go." Rayna told him not unkindly. She could see the man that Deacon could have easily become had he not gotten his act together when she looked at him and it broke her heart.

" _It's hard lovin' a man that's got a gypsy soul I don't know how you do it. I'm sure you how you know the perfect thing to say to save me from myself you're the angel that believes in me like nobody else. And I thank God you do."_

"Thank you," Paul replied simply.

"Will, keep a discreet eye on him and make sure he doesn't cause any trouble." Rayna whispered to Will before making her way back to where Scarlett stood.

Will looked over at Paul and then looked back again. He knew a thing or two about tough family relationships.

" _Cause when I'm a bullet shot out of a gun. Cause when I'm a firecracker comin' undone. When I'm fugitive ready to run all wild eyed and crazy no matter where my reckless soul takes me baby you save me."_

JC played his guitar solo and he looked over to where Maddie stood wrapped in Colt's arms.

Maddie could feel his eyes on her before she saw them. She stepped out of Colt's embrace and smiled warmly at JC.

He winked back at her.

" _Well, I know I don't tell you nearly enough, but I couldn't live one day without your love. When I'm a ship tossed around on the waves up on a high wire that's ready to break. When I've had just about all I can take. Baby you, baby you save me. When I'm a bullet shot out of a gun. When I'm firecracker comin' undone. When I'm a fugitive ready to run all wild eyed and crazy. No matter where my reckless soul takes me. Baby you save me."_

"Give me a mic," Rayna told one of the stage hands. She took the microphone that was offered to her and walked out on stage. She was on a very special mission.

"Well, hello, Mrs. Claybourne. I didn't know you'd be gracing us with your presence out here tonight. This is a very nice surprise." Deacon grinned.

"I couldn't resist myself after that song. I'm so proud of my husband." She replied. "Isn't he amazing?" The audience cheered wildly. "Deacon, let's do one of the new songs for them."

"I Need You?" He asked in reply. It was one of the songs on their duet album.

"Perfect, babe." She smiled at him.

Deacon started picking a tune on his guitar. _"I wanna drink that shot of whiskey I wanna smoke that cigarette. I wanna smell that sweet addiction on my breath. I wanna ride cross West Virginia in the back seat of a Cadillac you know some cowboys like me go out like that. So I need you. Like a needle needs a vein like my Uncle Joe in Oklahoma needs the rain. I need you like a lighthouse on the coast like the father and the son need the holy ghost. I need you."_

" _I wanna get lost in some corner booth cantina Mexico. I wanna dance to the static of an AM radio. I wanna wrap moon around us lay beside you skin on skin. Make love 'til the sun comes up 'til the sun goes down again. Cause I need you like a needle needs a vein. Like my Uncle Joe in Oklahoma needs the rain. I need you like a lighthouse on the coast like the father and the son need the holy ghost. I need you."_ Rayna sang into the same mic Deacon was using.

" _I wanna drink that shot of whiskey I wanna smoke that cigarette you know some cowboys like me go out like that. So I need you. oh I need you. I need you I need you I need you I need you."_ He sang. They stood so close together that they were touching because they couldn't hold hands.

" _Oh, I need you I need you. I need you I need you I need you too. Ohhhh."_ She closed the song out. She kissed him softly.

The audience erupted in thunderous applause.

"Ya'll are just too kind." He beamed this had gone better than he expected.

"Hey, babe, I have a question for you. You and I are family anyway we share children that makes us bonded in just about the deepest way that two people can be. But what do you say we try to make that bond a little stronger?" She asked a smirk playing around the edges of her lips.

"How do you mean?" His confusion showed on his face.

"Deacon, how would you like to join me as an official member of the Opry family and not just as the house bandleader?" She broke out into a smile.

Deacon put his hand over his mouth. "Ray, you're kiddin' me right now right?"

"I'm not playin' 'bout this darlin'. I'm bein' dead serious. So what do you say?" Rayna repeated the question.

"I say hell yes." He picked her up and spun her around. He kissed her deeply when he put her back on her feet.

* * *

A/N: Here is the new chapter for you guys I hope you liked it. Until next time please review.


	30. Chapter 30

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Homeboy by Eric Church and Burn by Chris Young.

* * *

Chapter 30

"JC, that was amazing. You did so well tonight. I knew that you could do it." Maddie threw her arms around JC's neck when he came off the stage.

"I knew I had you waitin' in the wings and I couldn't disappoint you. You would never let me live it down if I did." JC turned it into a joke, because he saw Colt giving him the evil eye.

"You talk about me like I do is nag you or something." She deadpanned.

"You only nag me about half the time." He clarified. "I should go pack my gear up. I'm a part time roadie and I don't exactly trust some of these guys with my stuff." He had to get away from her and Colt. Just seeing them together was like having his heart ripped out.

"Alright, I'll let you get packed up. You did great." She rubbed his arm.

JC went and began packing up his equipment. He opened his guitar case and reverently placed the guitar inside. He wiped his fingerprints off of it. It was the nicest guitar that he had ever owned. He was pretty sure it was worth more than his truck.

"Grayson, we need to talk." A voice came from behind him.

JC looked over his shoulder to see Colt standing there. "What do we have to talk about, Wheeler?"

"What the hell is going on between you and Maddie? You are like all she ever talks about. Let me take this opportunity to remind that she has a boyfriend and that's me." Colt told him.

"There's nothin' goin' on between Maddie and me. We are friends and writin' partners that's all there is to it. I know that you're her boyfriend and I respect that. I don't plan on crossin' any lines that shouldn't be crossed." JC put up his hands in a sign of innocence.

"Maddie may not see you for what you are, but I do. You're a leech just like the people who have hung on to my dad because of who he is my life. Face it, dude, you're not good enough for her and the better man won not that there was much of a contest. Just make sure that expensive guitar is the first and last thing you get from her." Colt crossed his arms over his chest.

"Men and women can be friends without anythin' else goin' on. I don't know what your problem is. Maybe you've got what amounts to an oversized clit where your dick should be, but you don't have to be threatened by me. Now if you'll excuse me some of us have to work for a living. We don't all have rich fathers and can sit around doin' nothin' but perfectin' how to be the world's biggest douche face." JC snapped the lid closed on his guitar case.

"Gentlemen, this is not the time or place for this. If you'd like to continue your dick measuring contest elsewhere that is fine, but you aren't doing it here." Avery stepped in and broke them up.

"Just remember what I said, Grayson. If you really care about her you'll let it go and let her be happy with the guy that can give her the world." Colt walked away in a huff.

"Jesus Christ, JC, the may have been one of the sickest burns I've heard in my life. That is so much better than the hell you give Gunnar all the time." Avery patted his shoulder. "You did a great job tonight. Don't pay any attention to that punk. You've got talent something he will never have."

"He's a fuckin' douche face that likes to wear douche caps. What she sees in him besides the taboo element I will never understand." JC snapped.

"Hey, I'm on your side here, man. If you have feelings for her she's not gonna know unless you tell her." Avery replied.

"I don't have feelings for her. I just have feelings about him bein' with her. She deserves better, Avery." JC took his hat off and ran his hand through his hair.

"She's young every girl has to make that first mistake." Avery grabbed him by the shoulders and steered him towards their group.

* * *

"Alright, baby, I'm just gonna go throw this guitar in my truck and I'll be right back in." Deacon told Rayna.

"Did you like your surprise?" She asked him.

"I loved it. It ranks up there as one of the best moments of my life. And you askin' me made it even more special." He was on cloud nine.

"Go take your guitar outside so you can come back and mingle." She pulled him to her and kissed him before sending him on his way.

Deacon walked out to his truck carrying his guitar case. He saw the glow from the cherry on the end of a cigarette next to his truck and he knew that it could only belong to one person. "What are you doin' here, Paul?"

"Came to see my boy sing. Is that a crime now?" Paul asked defiantly.

"It's no crime that I can think of. Just don't understand why you'd bother. You always told me that I'd never amount to nothin'." Deacon unlocked his truck and stowed his guitar in the back seat.

"Watchin' you up on that stage tonight sure proved me wrong. You got all your pawpaw's talent. That was just somethin' else that I didn't get along with the knack for stayin' put at any job. You are Deacon Paul Claybourne reincarnated. You take those strings on that guitar and you bend them to your will just like he did and you have a bunch of young'uns waitin' in the wings to learn from you just like him. I guess that talent just skipped a generation and that's why I could never make a go of it." Paul shrugged his shoulders.

"Paul, cut to the chase what do you want? Why did you come here tonight? It wasn't out of the goodness of your heart because you don't have one." Deacon slammed the truck door shut.

Paul reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a CD case. "I came because I wanted you to sign this damn thing for me. I listened to it and it was worth every penny that I paid for it. The songs that you wrote and the words that you sang on here they could have come from me about your momma forty somethin' years ago. I did love her the way that you love Rayna once. I just wasn't very good when it came to rememberin' that."

Deacon bit back the first unkind words that came to his lips, he couldn't bring himself to say them. In front of him stood a broken man and he couldn't kick him while he was down. He wasn't the bully that the older man had once been. He didn't believe in preying on the weak no matter how much they deserved it. He had the chance to prove to him that he was the better man with a subtle gesture of kindness. "Give it to me." He held out his hand.

Paul put the CD in his hand.

Deacon took a marker out of his glove box and signed the CD insert. He handed it back to his father. "Here, now get goin'. I don't want you still hangin' round out here when my family comes out." He pulled some money out of his wallet. "Here's a hundred bucks. Get yourself a cab and somethin' to eat."

"Thank you, son, I don't deserve this kindness." Paul's eyes were a mixture of sadness and regret.

"I'm not your son, Paul." Deacon threw over his shoulder as he walked back into the building.

* * *

"Hey, Mr. Bandleader, you did a pretty good job out there tonight." Layla smiled flirtatiously at JC.

"Thanks, Layla, I'm glad that you came out." JC grinned and bit his lip.

"We are label mates and we support each other it was the least that I could do." She touched his arm. She was doing what Jeff had told her to do and was trying to play up to him.

"It was no big deal. Deacon makes it easy for me he's a total pro." He replied. He wanted to be nice, but keep some distance between him and Layla. On the surface they were just about perfect for each other, but she was Will's ex. Even though Will was gay that was a line that he wasn't going to cross with his good friend's ex.

"You are way too modest." She chuckled throatily.

"I speak the truth it's a bigger deal than you're making it out to be. Deacon started out as a bandleader and look at where he's at now." She touched his arm again.

Maddie watched from across the room as the two of them talk. Jealousy flashed briefly in her eyes. She narrowed her eyes and stared hard at the back of Layla's head.

Colt didn't seem to notice that anything was amiss with her. He stood behind her and couldn't see her facial expression.

"Will, we need to have a chat." Jeff approached will discreetly.

"What about, Jeff?" Will sighed. He was grateful to Jeff for protecting his secret, but now that he saw what it was like to work for a label head that really had his back he understood that he had only done it to serve his purposes.

"That Grayson kid I've heard some of his stuff and he could be really big for Layla's career. Get a little show romance started and generate some buzz for the two of them. It would mostly benefit her though. The only problem is you two seem to be really good friends. He's not gonna want to cross that line with your ex. I need you to tell him that it's ok." Jeff didn't bother to sugarcoat the matter.

"JC is a big boy if he wants to go there I'm not gonna stop him, but I'm not gonna encourage it either. He would know somethin' was up if I did." Will replied.

"Find a way to be discreet and slip it into conversation, Will. You owe her this much. You made her believe in you and you sold her a lie. You turned her into the laughing stock of the country and you drove her to almost taking her own life. If you don't do this that secret of yours has a chance of coming out. Just think about it, buddy." Jeff patted him on the back and walked away. He knew no shame at all.

* * *

"Babe, did you know that Paul was here?" Deacon slid up and put his arm around Rayna's waist.

"I did, I let him stay and listen to a couple of songs. I had Will babysit him and make sure that he didn't cause any trouble. I just didn't have the heart to kick him out. He looked so broken." Rayna replied.

"I know I didn't have the heart to tell him to get lost when he approached me out in the parkin' lot either. I couldn't be him I couldn't kick him while he's down." He admitted.

"You're a good man, Deacon." She leaned into him. "Look at this. Did you ever think when we started out that one day our kids would basically grow up backstage at places like the Opry?"

"The dream came true it is just bigger and better than anythin' we ever could have expected." His kissed the side of her face.

* * *

 _"You were too bad for this little square town with your hip hop hat and your pants on the ground. Heard you cussed out momma pushed daddy around 'fore you tore off in his truck. Here you are runnin' these dirt old streets tattoo on your neck fake gold on your teeth. Got the hood here snowed, but you can't fool me we both know who you are."_ JC was in the studio recording another single. Once he got that down cold Bucky and Deacon would choose which one to release first.

 _"Homeboy you're gonna wish one day you were sittin' on the gate of a truck by the lake with your high school flame on one side ice cold beer on the other. Ain't no shame in a blue collar forty little house little kids little small town story. If you don't ever do anything else for me just do this for me brother and come on home boy."_ He hit the chorus.

"You help him write this one?" Bucky turned to face Deacon in the mixing booth.

"Yeah, I helped him with this one. He had to dig deep for it, but I got it out of him eventually." Deacon nodded his head along to the beat.

"Good work, we need to change your job title to include the words artist mentor. What I've seen you bring out in JC and Sadie has been amazing." Bucky clapped him on the back.

 _"I was haulin' this hay on Uncle Joe's farm thought of us barefoot kids in the yard. Man it seems we were just catchin' snakes in the barn now you're caught up in this mess. I could use a little help unloadin' these bales. I can keep you pretty busy with a hammer and nail. Ain't a glamorous life, but it'll keep you outta jail not worry us all to death."_

 _"Homeboy you're gonna wish one day you were sittin' on the gate of a truck by the lake with your high school flame on one side ice cold beer on the other. Ain't no shame in a blue collar forty. Little house little kids little small town story. If you don't ever do anything else for me just do this for me brother, come on home boy."_

"He's sounding good in there. He should you two only went over this song dozens of times the other night." Rayna walked into the booth.

"Get outta here, woman. I told you that you aren't gonna micro manage me on this project." Deacon looked over his shoulder at her.

"I'm not I just came to see how it was going. I love my baby boys, but I needed to get away from them for a little while." She leaned against Deacon.

 _"You can't hold back the hands of time momma's goin' gray and so is daddy's mind. I wish you'd come on back and make it all right before they're called home boy. Homeboy, come on home boy. Homeboy, come on home boy."_

"Jimmy, it sounds great. Come in here I want you to hear the playback." Deacon pressed the intercom button.

JC walked into the mixing booth and listened to the playback of the song. "I'm pretty sure that's perfect. That's the best it has sounded and I don't want to play around with it too much more."

"If your producer is happy with it then I'm happy with it." Rayna told him.

"I'm happy with it. That's the sound I was tryin' to get out of him the other night." Deacon agreed.

"That's three songs if we go with Cattleman's Gun. I'm still not sure how I feel about that song." Bucky made a pensive face.

"I say we give that song a chance. I like that song. I think it'll sell. It's a throwback put that and another song like it on vinyl and people will eat it up." Deacon argued.

"You know, Buck, he has a point. That could do very well." Rayna agreed.

"That's not a horrible idea. I'll look into it." Bucky shrugged.

"I have another song it's a little rough around the edges yet, but it'll do for now. If you guys want to hear it." JC offered.

"Go into the studio and play it for us." Rayna ordered him with a smile.

JC went back into the sound booth and picked up a guitar. _"You take a wrong turn drop the ball fall short you labor in vain. Yeah, you choke miss the boat bomb out cave in fall flat on your face. Yeah, that's every day life, but sometimes, you hit a good lick the stars light up your ship comes in you make your mark. You catch your break and you're sittin' on top yeah, cream of the crop. You're the stuff you set the bar you beat the odds and there you are spend most your life sittin' in the dark waitin' your turn, but every now and then you burn."_

"I don't hate it so far." Bucky said as he listened to the song.

"It's actually very good. Good job, babe." Rayna praised Deacon.

 _"You go wild in style chest out chin up you're king for a day. And then reality hits like a fist hits you hard steals your thunder away. And when it beats you down the wheel spins around. You hit a good lick the stars light up your ship comes in you make your mark. You catch your break and you're sittin' on top yeah, cram of the crop. You're the stuff you set the bar you beat the odds and there you are. Spend most your life sittin' in the dark waitin' your turn, but every now and then you burn."_

"I can't take credit for that one I didn't help him write it. I think he may have stumbled into that one all on his own." Deacon replied.

 _"You burn like a beacon, burn like a porch light, burn like a blue star, burn like a bon fire, burn like flickerin' red hot flame, burn like a match in a deep dark cave. Like a midnight mile high blaze. You hit a good lick the stars light up you ship comes in you make your mark. You catch your break you're sittin' on top, yeah, cream of the crop. You're the stuff you set the bar you beat the odds and there you are spend most your life sittin' in the dark waitin' your turn, but every now and then you burn. Yeah, you burn. Like a porch like a blue fire, you burn, burn, burn, burn."_

"I think he's starting to get the hang of this writing thing then." Bucky threw out there.

"JC, come on in here." Rayna pressed the intercom.

"Where did that song come from?" Deacon asked him.

"That is actually a co-write. Maddie and I wrote it together." JC admitted.

"Go take ten, I need to think about how we should arrange that song." Deacon told him.

"Sure I should probably go get some water." JC walked out of the booth.

"You two have a situation on your hands. Those two remind me a lot of these other two people I met when they were around the same age as them. I'm gonna say it they have the same magic together that you've always had. I think that it's more pronounced with you guys because of how you feel about each other." Bucky made his feelings on the matter known.

"I know, Buck. The first time I heard them sing together I saw it and I heard it. Before Maddie made her Opry debut JC pulled her aside and told her if she got scared to just look at him. Deacon has always been that protective with me on stage. I knew that man for all of fifteen minutes that night at the Bluebird and he said pretty much the same thing to me." Rayna agreed with him.

"The difference is if they have those feelings for each other neither one of them is showin' it. Or at least they are tryin' their best not to. JC was talkin' to Layla the other night and Maddie was just glarin' daggers at the back of her head." Deacon chuckled.

"Is that similar to the way I used to catch you lookin' at Teddy?" Rayna laughed with him.

"No, Teddy I pretty well learned to stomach. It was Luke that I really had the problem with." Deacon corrected her.

"I'm afraid to ask, but why?" She asked him.

"Teddy, I eventually got that you only married him because he was the safe option. With Luke you had the chance to pick me, but you still didn't. There was nothin' holdin' you back, no secret pregnancies and I wasn't drinkin' and still you chose another man over me. For a minute there I was startin' to believe that I wasn't good enough for you." Deacon admitted.

"Deacon, that's not true and it has never been true. I was scared to trust you and you have no idea how stupid I feel about that now. I would have missed out on all of this if I had. So far I really love this part of our story." She kissed him softly.

"Me too," Deacon rubbed his nose against hers. "Guess what? I just paid closing costs today and that house is ours."

"Babe, we are goin' over there later and we are gonna see if I wanna remodel or rebuild." She grinned at him.

"I saw that part comin'." He laughed.

* * *

"Layla, you're lucky that you came by when you did. It's just the two of us in the house right now and we may be able to get some writin' done without anyone here to disturb us." JC opened the door with a smile on his face.

"I heard that it can get a little wild over here from time to time." Layla flashed him a flirty smile.

"Oh, yeah, you've got no idea how wild it can get. We have a few beers and go howl at the moon. Actually, we are pretty tame. Scarlett keeps us under control." He offered her a seat on the couch.

She took her guitar out of the case. "You look like the type to need supervision."

"Can I get you somethin' to drink? Will hasn't been over in a couple of days we should still have beer, we have tea, bottled water." He was trying to be polite.

"I will take a water." She replied.

He tossed her a bottle of water and opened a beer for himself. "Alright, let's try to write somethin'. It's only a matter of time before one of my roommates show up." He picked up his guitar.

"Sounds good to me." She agreed with him.

"Ok, hold that thought right there. I obviously shouldn't be trusted to drink a beer, because I can't handle it without spillin' it." JC laughed about an hour later. He had spilled his beer all down the front of his shirt.

"You have a hole in your lip or something?" Layla laughed with him.

"Somethin' like that." He stripped his shirt off.

"JC," Maddie walked in without knocking. She saw that he was shirtless and that Layla was with him. "I'm sorry, I should have knocked. I didn't mean to interrupt anything."

"Maddie, relax, it's your daddy's house you have every right to walk in here without knockin'. You're not interruptin' anythin'. Layla and I were just writin'. I spilled my beer all down my shirt." He explained. He didn't want her to get the wrong idea at all. He didn't know why. It wasn't like it mattered she had a boyfriend.

"You don't owe me an explanation. I just came over to see if you wanted to go watch The Exes play with me tonight. Scarlett and Gunnar got a last minute gig." Maddie told him.

"Colt doesn't wanna go with you?" He asked.

"It really isn't his style and he made plans with his friends tonight." Maddie answered him. Her eyes latched on to his bare torso. Part of her couldn't help noticing how much more defined his chest and arms were than Colt's. "Layla, you wanna come too?" She extended an invitation to the older girl.

"Sure, I just need to go home and change." Layla agreed. She packed her stuff up.

"In that case I would love to join both you ladies. Just let me go put a shirt on. Maddie how'd you get here?" He looked a little confused.

"My mom and dad dropped me off. Daphne has a play date and they have a date or something with the boys. I don't know I just know I didn't want to be around for it." Maddie replied.

"I'll be right back. I wouldn't want you to throw stones at your boyfriend because you've seen me without a shirt on." He smirked.

"Right, because I will never look at any guy the same again now that I've seen you shirtless. You are such a loser when you want to be, James." Maddie knew that calling him by his given name would get to him.

"You don't want to play this game with me, Madison. We both know that I don't lose." He teased back.

"I'm going to get ready I will see you two there." Layla shook her head at them. Even she could clearly see the feelings that they had for each other.

* * *

"Look here, boys, this is your new home. Or at least it will be some time in the next decade if your momma ever decides what she wants to do with it." Deacon carried the boys into the new house in their car seats.

The inside of the house was showroom ready. Everything sparkled and shined like it was new, but that hadn't been the case until Deacon hired people to stage the inside for him. He knew he couldn't let Rayna see it while it was still a mess.

"Babe, I kinda love this house the way it is and I can't believe I'm saying that. It just feels really homey." Rayna threw her purse down on the coffee table."

"Honey, you really wouldn't have loved this house the way it was if I hadn't had it cleaned up before you saw it for the first time." He sat the boys' seats on the couch and set up their playpen.

"You were probably wise to do that, lover. I wouldn't have brought the boys in here if it was a dirty as you're acting like it was." She took Jaymes out of his seat.

"It was very dirty. I had it cleaned and staged for you. We can always get new furniture and remodel whatever you want." He picked Little Deacon up.

"First I want you to pick whatever room in this house that you want and that will be yours to do what you please with." She told him.

"I was thinkin' that we could do a joint office for the two of us. There's really no need for us to have more than one. We need a music room and maybe a media room. I was also thinkin' that the basement and the attic are both huge we could use part of one of those spaces for an in home recordin' studio." He let her in on his plans.

"Well, let's have a look around and see what we want to put where. This house is huge. And quite frankly you didn't buy it you stole it. Ten bedrooms six and a half baths. I mean seriously, babe. It's almost too big, but I like that we have room to grow and spread out." She replied.

"What do you mean room to grow?" He asked confused.

"Well, I was just thinkin' that the girls are both almost grown and we've just got the two little guys that are gonna be here with us. We always used to talk about having a big family and that's an option we still have now." She answered.

"Ray, are you askin' me to have another baby?" He tried to clarify what se meant.

"I'm not sayin' that we actively try to have another baby. I'm just sayin' that it wouldn't be the end of the world if we did. I've done the world renowned superstar thing; I haven't exactly had much time to be the kind of mother that I want to be. It's just an option, babe." She shrugged her shoulders.

"If it happens I wouldn't hate it. And plus tryin' but not tryin' could be a lot of fun for us. Plus, it might be nice to give these guys some playmates other than each other. I'm in if you are, babe. I'd love nothin' more than to retreat a little from the business and raise up a family with you out here. We don't have to give it all up. Maybe just no more huge tours that keep us away from home for months at a time. It would be fun to do a family tour. You and I could co headline a tour together or somethin'. Like you said we have a lot of options." He smiled.

"Just when I think I can't love you anymore than I already do you go and say that absolute perfect thing." She kissed him.

"I'm no one's definition of perfect I'm just perfect for you I guess." He winked at her.

* * *

A/N: Here is the new chapter. Sorry for the long wait. Until next time please review.


	31. Chapter 31

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Chevy Van by Eric Church and Don't You Wanna Stay by Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson.

* * *

Chapter 31

"Well, look who made it out tonight together." Will greeted JC and Maddie when they showed up to the venue. He exchanged a knowing look with Gunnar and Scarlett. They had yet to go on stage.

"Hey, sweetie, I'm glade that you came." Scarlett hugged her younger cousin.

"I hardly ever miss your shows unless they are out of town or some place that I can't sneak into." Maddie replied.

"We're really glad that you guys came. Bucky got us this gig last minute. He's pretty good at keeping us busy." Gunnar threw out there.

"JC, you want a beer?" Will asked. He was pretty much in charge of contributing to his delinquency since he wasn't old enough to buy alcohol.

"No, I better not. I drove Maddie tonight and Deacon would kill me if I even thought about it." JC replied.

"No wonder Uncle Deacon likes you so much." Scarlett arched her eyebrow at him. Her earlier warning for him to stay away from Maddie had obviously gone unheard. It wasn't that she didn't think he was good for her cousin, it was just that she didn't want to see Maddie fall hard for him and get hurt. She could tell just from the way they looked at each other that whatever they had between them was passionate.

"Scarlett, for the last time we are just friends." Maddie blushed.

"Maddie, I think we need to take an add out in the paper that says that. No one seems to believe us." JC rolled his eyes. He didn't know what he was going to have to say to get through to everyone that it wasn't like that between them.

The manager walked up to the table at that moment. "We have a little bit of a problem. The band that was supposed to open tonight just dropped out and we don't have anyone to take their place."

"Sure we do, Maddie and JC can handle it." Will jumped at the opportunity to get those two on stage together. He for one couldn't take their unaddressed sexual tension for another moment.

"Will, we don't have enough material between the two of us to cover a set." Maddie said worriedly.

"It doesn't all have to be original material. I will take covers of songs if that's all you can come up with." The manager said quickly.

"What do you say, Maddie? Let's hit 'em with At the End of the Day, Chevy Van, and The Rivers Between Us. We can throw in that new one we wrote and try it on for size." JC suggested.

"Ok, let's do it." Maddie agreed. "Gunnar, can I borrow a guitar?"

"Help yourself." Gunnar granted her request.

"Come on, Maddie, let's go get ready." JC offered her his hand.

"Ok, let's go," Maddie slipped her hand into his and they walked away from the table.

"Will, what the hell was that? That's my baby cousin and you just sent her off with the boy that she has insane sexual chemistry with." Scarlett demanded.

"That's exactly why I did that, Scarlett. Don't pretend for a second that they don't drive you just as crazy as they make the rest of us in the group." Will didn't seem to be repentant in the least bit.

"Scarlett, we all know that Colt isn't right for her. Her and JC seem to fit together like a hand and a glove. You can't spare her the heart break if something goes wrong. It's part of her growing up. As her friends, hell as her family all we can do is be there for her. I think they are good for each other." Gunnar weighed in.

"When Uncle Deacon gets pissed about this I'm sendin' him after you two clowns." Scarlett hated to grant them their point, but they were right.

" _I gave a girl a ride in my wagon. She jumped in and took control. She was tired and her mind was draggin' I said get some sleep and we'll get on down this road."_ JC sat on a stool next to Maddie and they both strummed guitars.

" _Like a picture she was layin' there moonlight dancin' off her hair. She woke up and took me by the hand. She's gonna love me in my Chevy van and that's alright with me."_ They sang together.

" _Her young face was like that of an angel and her long legs were tan and brown."_ He crooned.

" _You better keep your eyes on that road boy you better slow this vehicle down."_ She sang.

" _Cause like a picture she was layin' there moonlight dancin' off her hair. She woke up and took me by the hand. She's gonna love me in my Chevy van and that's alright with me."_ They stared deeply into each other's eyes as they sang.

" _Yeah, I put her off in a town that was so small you could throw a rock from end to end. A dirt road main street she walked off in her bare feet and it's a shame I won't be passin' that way again."_ He took over again.

" _Like a picture she was layin' there moonlight dancin' off her hair. She woke up and took me by the hand and we made love in my Chevy van, yeah we made love in my Chevy van and that's alright that's alright with me."_ They smiled widely at each other as they finished the song amid applause from the audience.

"They just crushed that song. I would never thought to make duet out of that." Gunnar sounded impressed.

"That didn't even sound like a cover they made that song their own." Scarlett agreed.

"The dual guitars with no accompaniment was a nice touch." Will added.

"In all my years in the business I've only ever heard a couple other duos that have that magic together. One of them is sittin' at this table right now and the other made that incredible young lady up there on that stage." Watty made it a habit to check out these shows regularly just in case he ran across an act that he liked.

"Mr. White, it's a pleasure to see you again." Gunnar shook hands with the older man.

"Please call me Watty. Your partner's uncle is the closest thing that I have to a son." Watty gave him a kind smile.

"Alright, we played our covers for ya'll and now we are gonna try out a new one that we wrote." JC spoke into his mic. _"I really hate to let this moment go the touch in your skin and your hair fallin' slow. When a goodbye kiss feels like this."_

" _Don't you wanna stay here a little while? Don't you wanna hold each other tight? Don't you wanna fall asleep with me tonight? Don't you wanna stay here a little while? We can make forever feel this way. Don't you wanna stay?"_ They sang the chorus in unison. They both strummed their guitars.

" _Let's take it slow I don't wanna move too fast. Don't wanna just make love wanna make love last. When you're up this high it's a sad goodbye."_ Maddie wailed.

" _Don't you wanna stay here a little while? Don't you wanna hold each other tight? Don't you wanna fall asleep with me tonight? Don't you wanna stay here a little while? We can make forever feel this way. Don't you wanna stay?"_

" _Oh it feels so perfect, baby."_ He sang.

" _Yeah it feels so perfect, baby."_ She answered back.

" _Don't you wanna stay here a little while? Don't you wanna stay here a little while? Don't you wanna hold each other tight? Don't you wanna fall asleep with me tonight? Don't you wanna stay here a little while? We can make forever feel this way. Don't you wanna stay?"_

" _Don't you wanna stay?"_ She showed off her impressive vocal range.

" _Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah."_ They harmonized to end the song.

Watty had recorded the whole performance on his phone and he sent it to Rayna via text.

"Uncle Watty, what are you doing here?" Maddie looked a bit like a child with her hand caught in the cookie jar.

"I come out to these things to check out the new talent and I was lucky enough to catch your set with this young man." Watty hugged her.

"Maddie, you know who this is don't you?" JC's jaw hung open.

"Watty White," Watty offered the young man his hand.

"JC Grayson, I know who you are, Mr. White. It's very nice to meet you." JC shook his hand enthusiastically.

"You have to be Vince's boy." Watty had known Vince as well.

"I'm guilty try not to hold that against me." JC gave a toothy grin.

"Anybody ever tell you that you remind them of a young Deacon?" Watty asked him.

"Yes sir, he's personally told me that." JC replied.

"If you have a demo that you want played just get it to me and I'll play it on my show." Watty offered.

"I think I would have to clear that with Rayna first, but that would be great." JC nodded his head.

"You let me worry about Rayna. I'll talk to her." Watty assured him.

* * *

"Babe, listen to what Watty just sent me. Songbird, that little girl of yours got the best of both you and Deacon. Listen to this and see if doesn't take you back to that first night at the Bluebird." Rayna read Deacon the text that Watty had sent her.

"I should have known that girl would find a way to get up on stage." Deacon shook his head amusedly. He had a tape measure going around the new house taking measurements.

She played the video for him. "Wow, Deacon, they really do remind me a lot of us."

"The difference is she can play guitar." He joked. "But, you're right they do remind me of us. The passion and the talent is there."

"You're so funny I forgot to laugh." She rolled her eyes at him. "I think they may be better than we were at that age honestly."

"Hold that thought," He answered his phone. "Hey, Bucky, what's up?" He sighed when he heard what Bucky had to say. "We will be right there." He hung up the call.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"Juliette is going on. Apparently she just marched through the office with all her equipment and she's planning to hold a concert on the roof." He reported.

"We better get down there." She sighed.

Juliette was still setting up by the time they got to the office.

"Tandy, watch the boys while we handle this please." Deacon pawned the boys off on his sister-in-law.

"Trust me I rather deal with them." Tandy readily agreed.

"I'm gonna strangle her one of these days." Rayna groaned.

Deacon, Rayna, and Bucky walked up to the roof. "Juliette, what the hell are you doing?" Rayna demanded.

"I'm making my comeback. People need to know that I didn't just have a baby and fade into oblivion. I can't be a washed up has been at twenty-five." Juliette replied.

"Maybe next time give me a little warning and I can set something up for you." Rayna suggested.

"Sometimes you gotta stop thinking about doing something and just do it." Juliette spouted off what Deacon had told her.

"Deacon, that's some of your wise man speak. I'm blaming you for this." Rayna turned on her husband.

"Hey, I'm innocent I do enough on my own." Deacon protested.

"Juliette, just do what you're gonna do. I know you're gonna do it anyway." Rayna threw her hands up. There was nothing that she could do or say that would get through to the younger woman. There was no use in trying. She would have more success talking to a brick wall at least the wall would listen.

* * *

"Scarlett, you guys were amazing like always." Maddie hugged her cousin after her set.

"Thanks, Maddie. You and JC were pretty great too." Scarlett replied. There was no denying that the younger girl was very talented.

"We don't hold a candle to the show ya'll just put on." JC disputed.

Gunnar took Scarlett's hand as the DJ put a slow song on. "If you two will excuse us for a moment." He led her to the dance floor.

"Maddie, would you wanna dance with me?" JC asked.

"I would like that a lot." Maddie took his offered his hand and followed him out onto the floor. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

He put his arms around her waist.

They swayed together to the beat of the song getting lost in each other's eyes. They were still swaying long after the song had ended.

"Do, you maybe wanna get out of here for a minute and go take a walk?" He suggested.

"That would be great. It's kinda stuffy in here." She agreed.

Will kept a close eye on Layla and he saw the face that she made as she watched JC and Maddie leave together. "Layla, I know about Jeff's twisted plan that he has and I'm telling you not to go through with it."

"Why do you care, Will?" Layla asked him in reply.

"I care because JC is a very good friend of mine and I don't want to see him get hurt. You didn't like being used, so why would you do that to someone else?" He questioned.

"My career needs all the help it can get thanks in part to you." She spat back.

"I think JC has enough girl trouble without you adding to it. Be his friend, work with him, just don't use him. He's just a kid. Don't be like me." He advised her.

"What would it hurt if I were upfront with him? It's not like he has a girlfriend or anything like that." She shrugged.

"He may not have a girlfriend, but his heart belongs to the girl he just walked out of here with whether he knows that or not. I'm pretty sure everyone else can see that there is something between them including you and I don't think you want to admit that." He tried to reason with her a little bit.

* * *

JC and Maddie walked so close together that they were almost touching. They walked until they came to the pedestrian bridge. Even though they were both silent things weren't awkward or stilted between them.

"It really is beautiful up here at night isn't it?" He asked.

"Yeah, it is." She walked to the railing and looked down at the river.

"We could write a song about it." He made a lame joke.

"I'm pretty sure that my parents already did and we just sang it tonight." She retorted.

"I think we could give it another shot then." He replied. He could feel the undercurrent of something and he couldn't put his finger on what it was. He stood behind her his hands on the outside of hers.

She turned around to face him and stared into his eyes.

He took a chance and bent down and kissed her softly.

She kissed him back for a moment and then she put both her hands on his chest and pushed him away. "We can't, I have a boyfriend." She panted. She'd never felt anything like that before in her life.

"I'm so sorry, Maddie, I shouldn't have done that. I don't know why I did that." He apologized profusely. He was breathing heavily.

"JC, relax it's ok. I kissed you back. You didn't do anything wrong. We didn't do anything wrong. I shouldn't have let it happen. I know that I have a boyfriend. We just sang all those love songs together and I guess we got caught up in the moment." She reassured him. She wasn't going to deny that she had liked kissing him and that something about it had felt right.

"I'm sure that's it. We are just really good friends." He agreed with her. If kissing her was wrong he didn't ever want to be right.

"Really great friends. Like one day you'll be one of my bridesmaids." She smiled.

"I think I'll have to fight with Will and Gunnar over that honor." He laughed.

"There's room for all three of my guys in my bridal party you don't have to fight it out." She giggled.

"That's a load off of my chest." He sighed in mock relief.

"You are such a smart ass." She slapped his arm playfully.

"I wonder where she learned that from." Deacon's voice broke through the otherwise quiet night.

"I know you're not suggesting that she heard that from me." Rayna pushed the boys in their stroller.

"Maddie, don't look now, but I think we might be busted." JC took a huge step away from her.

"I think that might be a safe bet." Maddie agreed with him.

"What are ya'll doin' up here?" Deacon asked them.

"We just got tired of the club and we decided to take a walk." JC answered.

"What are you guys doing here? I thought you like had a date or something and you had to go pick Daph up." Maddie questioned her parents.

"Her playdate turned into a sleepover and Juliette decided to throw a concert on the roof. That's why we are down here. We had dinner with Aunt Tandy and Uncle Bucky and we decided to go for a walk." Rayna informed her.

"Those two hellions let you have dinner in peace?" Maddie couldn't hide her surprise.

"They were really good. They don't give us an ounce of trouble. I can't say the same for their oldest sister." Rayna looked at her pointedly.

"I guess Uncle Watty ratted me out." Maddie sighed.

"Yeah, we saw that video. That was a very good song. I don't guess ya'll would wanna sell that song to us would ya?" Deacon grinned. He really didn't want to get on to her for singing.

"It would give you both a song writing credit and it's gonna get your names out there. Maddie, it would make you something more than my daughter. Jimmy, you need all the help that you can get." Rayna tried to talk sense into them.

"What do you think, partner, should we sell these two our song?" Maddie turned to JC.

"They both have honest enough faces I say that we can let 'em have it for now and pay us for it later." JC grinned and tipped his cowboy hat.

"If you think that they can be trusted then I will trust your judgement. Be warned that they get sidetracked and it may be awhile before they get around to actually recording that song." Maddie bit her lip to keep from smiling.

"Just for that now I'm not gonna ask the two of you to play at my Opry induction." Deacon teased them.

"Dad, it goes without saying that we are playing. We're your wayward musicians." Maddie jumped in quickly.

"Of course you're playin'. Your daddy is just teasing you." Rayna assured her.

* * *

"When are you guys gonna tell us where we are going?" Maddie asked from the back seat of her mother's SUV.

"We will be there in just a minute and then you will see." Deacon replied from his spot behind the wheel.

"Why is it such a big secret?" Daphne bounced in her seat excitedly.

"Because it's a surprise. How are the boys doing back there?" Rayna asked.

"They are both napping. I don't know why you asked that question they fall asleep every time you put them in a car." Maddie studied the screen of her phone like it held the meaning of life.

Deacon pulled up to the gate of the new house and punched the code into the keypad.

"Uh, what are we doing here?" Daphne asked when they came to a stop at the end of the driveway.

"How would you girls feel about this maybe being our new home?" Rayna asked. She knew that they would love the place, but she also knew that they wouldn't be too crazy about the idea of moving.

"Do we have a say in the matter?" Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Of course you have a say in the matter. Why don't you get out and take a look first and then tell us what you think?" Deacon's face lit up with a grin. He was so excited to show the girls around.

"Babe, go unlock the door and grab some firewood from the barn. I wanna test out that fireplace. The girls will help me get the twins in." Rayna said when neither of the girls replied to his statement.

"Sure thing, baby." He leaned over and pecked her lips. "When I get done I'll give ya'll the tour I promise you're gonna love this place." He flashed the girls a smile and got out of the car. He went around to the back of the car and opened the gate to let Elvis out. "Come on, Elvis, let's go." The dog took off running.

"I wanna talk to you both in private for a minute. I know that this is another huge change, but the important thing is we will all be together as a family. I don't know if you can tell or not, but this house makes Deacon very happy." Rayna turned around in her seat to face her daughters.

"Isn't he happy at home?" Maddie asked.

"He's very happy with us, but it's not his home." Rayna answered her.

"But you just said that the only thing that matters is that we are together as a family." Daphne looked confused.

"And that's true, but Deacon isn't entirely comfortable at the house. It doesn't feel like home to him. It's not something that we picked out together. Daddy and I picked that house out together when we got married. Deacon had no say it and nothing there is really his. Belle Meade isn't exactly his style either. I love that man to death, but he's better suited for the country than the country club." Rayna laughed softly.

"Can't you just like redo the house and make him feel more at home?" Maddie had a petulant tone in her voice.

"We could give him a special room that's just his." Daphne suggested.

Rayna smiled at her youngest daughter's suggestion. "This house and having something that's ours all of ours is really important to Deacon. If you girls don't want to move he's willing to wait until you both graduate from high school because he doesn't want you to be miserable. All he wants is to make the five of us happy. Ya'll know that he'd do anything for his girls and that includes me. He's sacrificed a lot for us to make us happy and I think it's our turn to make him happy. I'm just askin' you to give this place a chance before you decide that you hate it. Can you do that for me? Can we give this a try for him?"

"Whatever," Maddie grumbled.

"Ok, momma, I can do that for Deacon." Daphne agreed.

"Thank you, for what it's worth I really do think you're gonna love it here." Rayna winked at them. "Maddie, you know your daddy loves you don't you?"

"I know that, mom." Maddie replied.

"Then try to be supportive of him. He does a lot of things for us that he doesn't wanna do. I can't count the number of chick flicks we've made him watch since he moved in." Rayna pleaded with her.

"Ok, I'll try." Maddie finally relented.

"Come on let's get out and take a look around." Rayna got out of the car and grabbed Deacon's car seat out of the back. "Can one of you get Jayme for me please?"

"I've got him, mom." Daphne got Jaymes out of the car.

"I hope daddy remembered to pack your chest carriers. Momma is not looking forward to trying to push your stroller over this terrain." Rayna opened the front door and walked inside.

"What do you girls think so far?" Deacon came in through the double French doors in the kitchen that afforded a great view of the lake. That whole side of the kitchen was one huge picture window. He had a load of firewood in his arms.

"We have a lake here?" Daphne asked excitedly.

"Yeah, we have a lake here. And I'm thinkin' that we might be able to have a discussion 'bout maybe gettin' a horse one day." He grinned.

"Deacon," Rayna warned him.

"Mind your manners, I'm talkin' to my girl. This is between the two of us." He retorted.

"Really? We can get a horse?" Daphne's eyes got big.

"We can talk 'bout it anyway. I'm not makin' you any promises." He replied.

"Dad, we have no pool or anywhere for me to lay out and tan in the summer." Maddie objected.

"The queen already ruled on that one. The only way she'd let me buy the house was if I agreed to have a pool and a hot tub put in." He reassured her.

"Babe, tell them what else you're having put in." Rayna urged him.

"Maddie, how would you like to have our own in home recordin' studio and music lounge?" He asked.

"What? No way. Dad, you're kidding me right now." Maddie finally got excited.

"Nope, I'm not kiddin'. If we are gonna do this we are gonna do it together. That way we are all involved and it's somethin' that's ours." This really meant the world to him.

"How soon can we move in then?" Maddie asked.

"We have a long way to go for that yet, but we can start getting the ball rolling." Rayna answered her.

"You haven't even seen the lake up close yet or the barn. Why don't you go take a look around upstairs while momma and me get the boys ready to go outside?" He suggested.

"Ok," The girls answered in unison and took off up the stairs.

"I told you they'd love it." Rayna grinned at him.

"Either that or their momma bribed them to say they did. Either way I'm grateful. Thank you, baby." He smiled back at her.

"I think that it's important that we build something of our own as a family. Now, tell me that you brought their chest carriers or you're gonna be pushin' that stroller through the yard." She begged him.

"I brought 'em don't worry. I also packed the little hats that their mawmaw made them since it's still a little chilly out." He reassured her.

"You know I'm gonna kill you for telling her she could get a horse right?" She arched her eyebrow at him.

"I needed a sellin' point." He shrugged not repentant in the least bit.

* * *

A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed the new chapter. A few things are starting to come to a head here and it's about to get really exciting. Until next time please review.


	32. Chapter 32

A/N: Thanks for the reviews. The songs used in this chapter are Traveling Soldier by the Dixie Chicks, I'm Coming Over by Chris Young, and See You When I See You by Jason Aldean.

* * *

Chapter 32

"Ray, this letter just came for you via messenger and Juliette is on her way in with Glenn now." Bucky handed her an envelope.

"She give you an ETA? I really need to get her under control and see what's goin' on with that girl. I swear she's about as much trouble as my teenager." Rayna rubbed her temples. She tore the envelope open and sighed when torn up pieces of check fluttered out.

"She should be here any minute now." He looked concerned. "What's that?"

"Beverly's way of tellin' me to go fuck myself." She cussed. She didn't need this on top of having to deal with Juliette.

"I'm sorry I know how much you hoped that would work." He laid a sympathetic hand on her shoulder.

"I'll figure something out. Maybe Tandy is right this is one battle I have to let him fight for himself." She took a deep breath. "Now I need to concentrate on Miss Sparkly Pants."

"Please don't tell your sister she was right about something else." He begged her.

"That's right you're in the dog house right now. I wish you luck with that, my friend. She is our father's daughter and she can be vindictive when she's pissed." She wasn't being helpful at all. She found the whole situation comical.

"I will leave you to deal with Juliette alone." He threatened. They both knew that he wouldn't because he needed to be there to make sure the two divas didn't kill each other.

"You summoned and here I am." Juliette breezed into the office with Glenn on her heels.

"Juliette, we need to talk about your rooftop concerts." Rayna told her. She stood behind her desk with her arms crossed.

"They have been a huge success. They are letting people know that I'm still out there." Juliette argued.

"You've gotten fines from almost every city that you've played." Rayna pointed out to her.

"We haven't got any fines from Atlanta or Chicago." Juliette replied. "If this is about the money I'll pay for them."

"This isn't about the money. This is about the way you're going about this whole thing." Rayna tried talking sense into her.

"All the publicity in the world isn't going to do anything for you without an album to back it up." Bucky added.

"Then I'll have a finished album for you in two days." Juliette stated boldly.

"Juliette, I'm not asking you to do it that quickly." Rayna could feel one hell of a headache coming on.

"No, you want results I'll get you results. You'll have my finished album in two days." Juliette got up and stormed out.

"I'm sorry about that, I don't know what's gotten into her." Glenn apologized for her.

"Glenn, how worried should I be about her? I know that she's unpredictable at the best of times, but she doesn't seem like herself right now." Rayna was genuinely concerned for the younger woman.

Glenn shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "Honestly, I don't even know. I've never seen her like this before. She barely pays any attention to the baby and she's just so driven."

"If she needs anything you let me know. If I can catch in an unguarded moment maybe I can talk some sense into her." Rayna offered.

"Someone needs to get through to her. I'll let you know and I will try to keep her under control as much as I can." Glenn promised.

* * *

"Jimmy, go ahead and take a break." Deacon pressed the intercom button on the control panel.

"He's sounding really good." Avery pushed Cadence in her stroller.

"Hey, Avery, it's good to see you." Deacon greeted him.

"It's good to be here instead of jet setting all over the country." Avery replied.

"Look at that pretty little thing. You're gonna have a hell of a time keeping boys away from that one." Deacon smiled down at Cadence.

"It'll probably be one of those two boys that I have to worry about." Avery pointed to where Little Deacon and Jaymes laid in their playpen.

"My boys are gonna be perfect gentlemen." Deacon assured him. "What brings you by?"

"I need you to lay some of your man wisdom on me. I'm just at a loss for what to do about Juliette she shows no interest in Cadence. It's like all she cares about is work." Avery sighed.

"I noticed that when she called me over to write. I thought it was just because she was a new momma, but now I'm not so sure." Deacon agreed with him.

"I don't know what to do. I keep thinking that if I can help her get a win professionally then maybe she will settle down in her personal life. I gave up my career so she could do her thing and that didn't seem to make things any better." Avery ran his hands through his hair.

"I wish I knew what to tell you. I know Ray is still pretty hormonal from havin' the boys. But she doesn't shy away from them or anythin' like that. If anythin' she is too hands on sometimes." Deacon really wanted to help him, but he didn't know how.

"I don't know if she has postpartum or if she is just afraid of turning into her mother. I just know that I've basically neutered myself to make her happy and I don't know what more to do for her." Avery looked like he was at the end of his rope.

"You may not be able to get through to her right now, but I know what you could do to help me. I've got Layla comin' in here to do a duet with Jimmy you could help me produce that." Deacon offered.

"I've got Cadence here." Avery would have loved to feel like a man again, but he had his daughter to think about.

"So, I've got my boys here with me. It's good for her to see her daddy work. Just throw her in baby prison with the boys. It's ok for you to do things for yourself too. I promise that doesn't make you a bad husband or father." Deacon patted him on the back.

"In that case I'd love to stay and help." Avery smiled at him gratefully.

"What is this bring your barely legitimate kid to work day?" Jeff sneered when he walked into the booth with Layla.

"Jeff, it is such a displeasure to see you as always." Avery retorted.

"Layla, just go on in and join JC in the sound booth. We laid down the instrumental tracks earlier. We can always change them later if you want to." Deacon ignored Jeff.

"Ok, sounds great." Layla went off to join JC.

"I still say that if I were Luke I'd demand a DNA test." Jeff was just trying to get a rise out of Deacon.

"Jeff, Deacon is a very patient man, but if he knocks you on your ass I'm the only witness and I'm gonna say that I didn't see a thing." Avery stepped in before Deacon could kill him.

"Let's just get to work." Deacon said after he counted to ten. Jeff wasn't worth it.

"Sorry I'm late, babe. I got caught up with some paperwork at the office." Rayna came in a few minutes later.

"You're not terribly late I still have time to make Will's thing if you wanna take over here. Then I will meet you back here and we can go home and get ready for my concert tonight." Deacon kissed her cheek.

"I'll handle things here you go to Will's show and come back when it's done." Rayna told him.

"Ok, I'll see you in a little while then. Those boys are gonna be wantin' to eat soon just so you know." Deacon added.

"It's under control just go." She laughed at him.

* * *

"Look at these two babies." Deacon was looking at a picture of him and Rayna that they had hung up for his induction concert.

"We were so young there and oh that hair." Rayna laughed.

He pointed to a picture of the two of them with Vince. He and Vince both wore sleeveless flannel shirts and they each had an arm around her. "The three musketeers all for one and one for all. Actually it was more like you held our drunk asses up no matter how much trouble we caused for you."

"And I'd do it again in a heart beat. You two were the best friends that I've ever had. Even if he was a slob and he wouldn't clean things until me and him got into a huge screaming match over it." She leaned into him.

"You fought with him as much as you fought with me. You never once gave up on either of us. Even when you should have and even when we made it impossible for you to believe in us." He wrapped his arm around her.

"You two were my family you saw me through some of the darkest days in my life. I wasn't gonna give up on either of you. Jimmy looks just like him doesn't he?" She mused.

"Jimmy could very possibly be a clone of Vince. He was maybe only two or three years older than Jimmy when that picture was taken." He agreed.

"Have I told you lately how proud I am of you?" She slung her arm around his waist.

"You have, but it's always nice to hear." He kissed the top of her head.

"You should head to your dressing room and start getting ready. I'm gonna go check in with your momma and the boys. Last time I checked her and daddy were fussing over them." She told him.

"Alright, I will see you in a little bit." He walked back to his dressing room.

He looked around the room for a minute and took it all in. Part of him couldn't believe that this was finally happening for him. He didn't need the fame or to make it huge in the business he just wanted to get his songs out to people. He had to admit his new found stardom was nice. He wasn't just Rayna Jaymes' side man anymore.

"Penny for your thoughts, sweetie?" June asked him from the doorway.

"Hey, momma, come on in here. Look at how gorgeous you are tonight." He smiled widely at her.

"You don't think it's too much? Rayna had her stylist fix me up. I'm not so sure about it." She blushed at her son's compliment.

"I think that you've always been beautiful, momma. It was about time that someone made you feel that way." He assured her.

She reached up and touched his cheek tenderly. "I'm so proud of you, Deacon John, you've become the man that I always knew you could be. You're the most amazin' husband and daddy I've ever met. You have all these young musicians that look up to you and hang on to every word you say. You picked yourself up when your daddy's demons got the better of you. My greatest honor in this life is gettin' to be your momma."

Deacon took a ragged breath and wiped away the tear that had fallen down his face. "Damn it, momma. I gotta go onstage in a minute and you got me blubberin' like a baby. I needed to hear that thank you."

"You're welcome. Don't let this stuff with Paul get to you. You don't owe him a damn thing and I don't want you to feel like not givin' him half of your liver makes you a bad son. You're a wonderful son and you always have been. Now go out there and make me proud." She kissed his cheek.

"It's an absolute honor to be here and play for ya'll tonight. I'm blown away by your support of the new album. I heard this concert tonight sold out within minutes. I'm still tryin' to wrap my head around that. I'm just a simple Mississippi boy with a song to sing. I'm grateful that ya'll are still interested in listenin'. Playin' here is like comin' home for me. Long before I was a husband and a father the Opry was my family. That bein' said before I play for you tonight I would like to invite my girls out here to play a little somethin' for you. Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like for you to give a warm Opry welcome to Maddie and Daphne Conrad accompanied by Mr. JC Grayson." Deacon said when he took the stage.

* * *

Maddie, Daphne, and JC walked onto the stage from the wings as Deacon walked off. JC lowered a mic stand for Daphne before taking taking his spot on the other side of Maddie. He and Maddie shared a look before they started strumming their guitars.

" _Two days past eighteen he was waitin' for the bus in his Army green. Sat down in a booth in the café there gave his order to a girl with a bow in her hair. He's a little shy so she gave him a smile. He said would you mind sittin' down for awhile and talkin' to me I'm feelin' a little low. She said I'm off in an hour and I know where we can go."_ Maddie sang softly.

" _So they went down and they sat on the pier. He said I bet you got a boyfriend, but I don't care. I got no one to send a letter to. Would you mind if I sent one back here to you?"_ JC took the second half of the verse.

" _I cried never gonna hold the hand of another guy. Too young for him they told her waitin' for the love of a travelin' soldier. Our love will never end waitin' for the soldier to come back again. Never more to be alone when the letter says the soldier's comin' home."_ They sang the chorus in unison. Maddie and JC's eyes were on each other the whole time.

"They really are somethin' special aren't they?" Deacon whispered to Rayna.

"They are and you were right they are ready for this." Rayna agreed with him.

" _So, the letters came from an Army camp in California then Vietnam. And he told her of his heart. It might be lovin' all the things he was so scared of."_ Maddie sang again.

" _He said when it's gettin' kinda rough over here I think of that day sittin' down at the pier. And I close my eyes and see your pretty smile. Don't worry, but I won't be able to write for awhile."_ JC picked up again.

" _I cried never gonna hold the hand of another guy. Too young for him they told her waitin' for the love of a travelin' soldier. Our love will never end waitin' for the soldier to come back again. Never more to be alone when the letter says the soldier's comin' home."_

JC put his guitar down and picked up a fiddle. He went and stood beside Daphne who was playing the mandolin. He kneeled down next to her and winked.

"He's so sweet to her." Rayna observed.

"He was the one who insisted that they include her in this song." Deacon told her. "They are really doin' a beautiful job with this song." He teared up a little bit from pride.

"They really are." Rayna laced her fingers through his.

" _One Friday night at a football game the Lord's Prayer said and the anthem sang. The man said folks will you bow your heads for a list of local Vietnam dead."_ Maddie closed her eyes as she sang.

" _Cryin' all alone under the stands was a piccolo player in the marching band and one name read and nobody really cared, but a pretty little girl with a bow in her hair."_ JC sang soulfully. He had reclaimed his guitar.

" _I cried never gonna hold the hand of another guy. Too young for him they told waitin' for the love of a travelin' soldier. Our love will never end waitin' for the soldier to come back again. Never more to be alone when the letter says the soldier's comin'. I cried never gonna hold the hand of another guy. Too young for him they told her waitin' for the love of a travelin' soldier. Our love will never end waitin' for the soldier to come back again. Never more to be alone when the letter says the soldier's comin' home."_

The crowd gave them a standing ovation.

"Sing with me?" Deacon asked before he went to take the stage again.

"Of course, babe, just let me know when you want me." Rayna kissed his cheek.

"I will," He winked at her and walked back out on stage. He hugged Maddie and Daphne on their way off the stage. "I'm so proud of you both."

JC took his spot on the stage as bandleader.

"Was that another one the songs you two wrote together?" Rayna asked Maddie.

"Yeah, he wanted to go like seventies folk country with the song and it ended up turning out better than we expected." Maddie explained.

"Very well done, Maddie." Rayna praised her. "Daphne, that was so great."

"Thanks, mom," Both girls answered in unison.

Deacon picked his guitar up off the stand and put the strap around his neck. "Boy, those two girls are somethin' else. They are gonna run me out of a job here soon. And I can't forget JC Grayson my amazin' bandleader. Let's hear it for them one more time." He waited for the applause to die down before speaking again. "Let's open this up with one of the new ones off of About a Girl."

" _We say goodbye see you around. We turn our backs then turn back around. We break up we make up and we make love. We can't seem to let go girl. So I'm comin' over runnin' every red light to hell with the closure save it for another time. Try not to think about you but it ain't workin'. Why put out a fire when it's still burnin'? Just when I think movin' on is gettin' closer I'm comin' over."_ This was another song that had been inspired by his relationship with Rayna.

" _I'm all alone, but you're on your phone tellin' me you miss and that you're at home. Who knows what we are in the mornin' all I know is I want you. So I'm comin' over runnin' every red light to hell with the closure save it for another time. Try not to think about you but it ain't workin'. Why put out a fire when it's still burnin.? Just when I think movin' on is gettin' closer I'm comin' over. Oh, I'm comin' over."_ He bit his lip sexily while he made eyes with his wife. He knew what that look did to her. He was planning on getting lucky later.

Rayna flirted back with him without realizing that she was doing it. It amazed her that after so many years together they still acted like the teenagers they had been when they met.

"You two are absolutely scandalous. You're having eye sex in front of hundreds of people." Tandy scolded her sister playfully.

"This is a precursor to the actual sex that is gonna happen later." Rayna laughed at the look she got in response.

" _Yeah, we said that we're done and I know that it's late, but you already know I'm on my way. I'm comin' over runnin' every red light to hell with the closure save it for another time. Try not to think about you, but it ain't workin'. Why put out a fire that's burnin'? I'm comin' over runnin' every red light to hell with this closure save it for another time. Try not to think about you, but it ain't workin'. Why put out a fire when it's still burnin'? Just when I think movin' on is gettin' closer. I'm comin' over. Oh, I'm comin' over."_ He closed out the song.

He ran through a few more songs a mix of old and new some that had been recorded before and some that hadn't.

"As ya'll know I have a long history in this town and that means I have a lot of friends that owe me favors. Though I get the feelin' that there's one friend in particular that ya'll would like to see." He looked over to the side of the stage. "Babe, why don't you come on out here and help me kick it up a notch?"

"Sugar, I thought you would never ask." Rayna walked out on stage holding a mic.

"Mrs. Deacon Claybourne, ladies and gentlemen, though you know her better as Rayna Jaymes." He introduced her. "Where you been hidin' out on me?"

"Darlin' you oughta know. I sent you a postcard." She batted her eyelashes at him.

He launched into Postcard From Mexico on his guitar. "Whoa, I'll tell ya'll what. We wrote that song longer ago than I care to count at the moment. It's always been a crowd pleaser." He said after they'd made it through the song.

"We were staying in this little bungalow down that looked out on the Gulf of Mexico when we wrote that. Neither of us had any idea it was gonna become as popular as it did. This man has been by my side since we were playing barrooms for peanuts. That's why I'm so proud to be at his side on this stage tonight." She laid it on a little thick.

"Even though we weren't always together offstage when we took the stage we made magic. Maybe we were both gluttons for punishment or maybe deep down we both knew it wasn't over." Deacon went on.

"That and the fact that we were never good at sayin' goodbye." Rayna chimed in.

He picked out a slow staccato rhythm on his guitar. _"Let's don't say goodbye. I hate the way it sounds. So if you don't mind let's just say for now."_ Unlike most of their songs they sang this one in complete unison their voices melding together.

" _See you when I see you another place some other time. If I ever get down your way or you're ever up around mine. We'll laugh about the old days and catch up on the new. Yeah, I'll see you when I see you and I hope it's some day soon."_

" _God made this old world round. And maybe it's that way so the paths we go down yeah will cross again someday and someday I'll. See you when I see you. Another place some other time. If I ever get down your way or you're ever up around mine. We'll laugh about the old days and catch up on the new. Yeah, I'll see you when I see you and I hope it's some day real soon."_

" _I hope it's some day soon."_ He sang that line.

" _See you when I see you. Another place some other time. If I ever get down your way or you're up around mine. Just stop by. We'll laugh about the old days and catch up on the new. Yeah, I'll see when you when I see you 'til then my prayers are with you and I hope it's some day soon. I'll you when I see you."_ Deacon leaned over and kissed her when they finished singing. As usual the crowd went wild like it normally did when they were together. For years even when they weren't together they had been the public's favorite non-couple.

"Tonight has been a dream for me. I would have never thought back when I was startin' out that it would end up here. I figure it's only right that I close this show out with the person I played my first show with." He said after he'd played a few more songs.

Rayna walked back out on the stage. "Honey, I think it's gonna take more than just me to help you shut this down."

"What did you have in mind?" He asked.

She took his hand and gestured with her other hand for someone on the side of the stage. "You'll see."

Maddie and Daphne walked back out on stage followed by Scarlett and June who were carrying Little Deacon and Jaymes.

"I thought that we could use a little company." Rayna smiled at him. She had decided that just this once it would be ok to expose their family to the public eye. Actually now that they were together she was a little more open with the press about some things, because she didn't have to hide her true feelings anymore.

"I couldn't think of a more perfect way to end things tonight." He beamed at his family with pride. He gestured for JC to start playing. A Life That's Good was the perfect song for this occasion. It was what he'd had in mind when he'd written the song he just didn't know it at the time.

"Ray, we may have an issue." Bucky had his tablet in hand when she walked off the stage.

"What is it, Buck?" Rayna asked him.

Bucky pulled up pictures on his tablet of Will shirtless along with Kevin. "See for yourself."

"That's something we can take care of tomorrow. It's not something that I'm too worried about. I have to go with Deacon to his photo shoot with Harley tomorrow and we can call Will into the office after that." Rayna told him.

"I'm just saying that we need to get out in front of this." Bucky stressed.

"I know and we will get on top of it, Buck. I promise you that it is gonna be ok. Right now though my husband is waiting on me in his dressing room and I need to go meet him." Rayna replied.

"You two are gross. Just go and make sure you lock the door this time. No one else needs to be scarred for life from walking in on you." Bucky sighed and rolled his eyes. No matter how old those two got they never learned.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you enjoyed it. Just for the record when I list the songs I realize that some of them are covers done by other artists I list the artist who's style of the song will fit best. Until next time please review.


	33. Chapter 33

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Leave the Pieces by the Wreckers and Home Alone Tonight by Luke Bryan.

* * *

Chapter 33

Deacon sat astride a black Harley with a leather jacket and aviator sunglasses on. Underneath the jacket he wore one of his signature denim shirts. A chain hung from the left side of his belt loops. A sexy, broody pout was fixed on his face which was covered with just the right amount of stubble. The set behind him was made to look like an old honky tonk. Instead of a saddlebag a guitar case was strapped to the back of the bike.

"Deacon, that's perfect." The photographer snapped off a couple shots. "Bring in the model." He called out.

Rayna crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the back of the skinny, blonde model that walked onto the set. The young woman was barely dressed. She wasn't crazy about the idea of the model being that close to her husband.

"Deacon, can you take the wedding ring off?" The photographer asked him.

Rayna shot the man a look.

Deacon looked at him over the top of his sunglasses like he had lost his mind. "Are you crazy? This thing doesn't come off it was welded on. I'm pretty sure my wife would kill you and me both. That was pretty funny though."

"What he said." Rayna agreed with him.

"This isn't working. Let's take a break." The photographer said a few minutes later. He couldn't get the chemistry he was looking for between Deacon and the model.

"Ray, the next time I decide somethin' like this is a good idea do me a favor and stop me." Deacon wrapped his arms around her from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Jealous looks pretty hot on you by the way."

"This is the price of being a star, babe." Rayna brought her hand back and stroked the hair on the back of his head "Shut up, I am not jealous."

"You're so sympathetic. You know that?" He rubbed his beard against her cheek.

She giggled and scrunched up her nose. "You gotta pay for my pool and hot tub somehow, boy." She spun around in his arms to face him and put her arms around his neck.

He rested his forehead against hers and stared deeply into her eyes.

She stared back into his eyes intensely.

"That's it, that right there is what I'm looking for. The intensity the passion." The photographer exclaimed when he caught sight of them. "Ms. Jaymes, how open would you be to joining him for this photo shoot?"

"I wouldn't want to steal his thunder or anything like that." She bit her lip a little unsure.

"We can't get the chemistry from him with any of the models anywhere near what he has with you." The photographer explained.

"I should hope not." She replied. "What do you think, babe? I don't want to show you up or make this about me. It's your time to shine." She really didn't want to take anything away from him or have him feel like she was.

"I never mind sharing the spotlight with you. This is for a good cause and if it's gonna get me out of here any sooner I would love for you to join me." He grinned at her.

"You sure you don't feel like I'm trying to steal your thunder?" She asked just to be sure. She knew that he never felt that way with her, but when she was with Luke that was how things had been.

"I'm positive, babe. What's good for you is good for me and vice versa." He promised her.

She turned back to the photographer. "Count me in."

"Let's get Ms. Jaymes in hair and makeup." The photographer called to one of his assistants.

Ten minutes later Rayna returned from hair and makeup with a wardrobe change.

"Holy hell, baby." Deacon's mouth hung open.

Rayna was dressed in a brown leather vest that showed her midriff. She wasn't wearing a bra underneath it and her ample cleavage threatened to spill over the top. She had on a pair of skintight jeans a chain hung from her belt loops on the right side. The belt she wore had a round silver belt buckle with turquoise accents. A pair of cowboy boots set the outfit off. Her strawberry blonde hair laid down her back in big bouncing curls. She too wore a pair of aviator sunglasses.

"Like what you see, darlin'?" She smirked and spun around.

"Not like, love." He corrected her. He moved in to kiss her.

"Makeup," She pulled away from him.

"I won't mess your lips up now, but later when we get a minute alone." He growled lowly. "You need to see if they will let you keep that outfit." He whispered in her ear. She always turned him on, but there was just something about that outfit.

The remainder of the photoshoot went very smoothly and they finished up about two hours later.

"The boys are with your momma for the afternoon, you need to pick the girls up and head to the studio with them and let them lay down some tracks. I know that you're still working with Jimmy on the duet he's doing with Layla and I will be there as soon as I can. I'm meeting with Will this afternoon, but that shouldn't take me very long." Rayna gave Deacon a rundown of what they were doing.

"Right, I have just enough time to drop you at the office before I go pick the girls up. Buck or Tandy can give you a ride right?" Deacon double checked.

"Yeah, that won't be a problem. Let's get a move on." She took his hand.

* * *

"Lamar, I wish I could say that it's a pleasant surprise to see you, but that would be a lie." Teddy looked up in annoyance when he heard someone enter his office.

"I just thought you would like to know that I had your little problem taken care of. After you screwed it up by talking to her again like I told you not to I might add." Lamar retorted.

"What did you do?" Teddy asked. He wasn't sure that he wanted to know the answer to that question.

"The less you know about that the better off you'll be." Lamar told him. He didn't need him knowing the details of what he had done.

"Thank you, I know that you took a risk helping me like that after you just got the feds off of your back." Teddy was grateful.

"I didn't do it for you, Teddy. I did it for my granddaughters. They don't deserve to be put through that kind of hell because their father doesn't know when to keep his zipper pulled up." Lamar crossed his arms.

"I know, I know you're still waiting on your stadium deal and I'm working on it. It's just gonna take some time. I'm getting some push back from the council and the finance officer. They don't like the amount of money it's going to cost." Teddy assured him.

"Teddy, it would not be wise to disappoint me on this one. Get creative if you have to. Just get it done." Lamar warned him.

"Like I said I'm working on it. Just give me a little bit more time to get some things together." Teddy bargained with him.

"Don't take too much time, Teddy. I'm not a patient man and you know this." Lamar gave him one last word of warning before he left.

* * *

Deacon sat in the pickup lane in his truck waiting on the girls to get out of school. He flicked on the radio and a smile came to his face when he heard the tail end of Just As I Am.

" _That was Deacon Claybourne with Just As I Am his hit single off his new record About A Girl which is currently sitting at number three on the country charts. For those of you that didn't catch him at the Opry last night you missed one hell of a show he was really in his element."_ The DJ said.

He drummed his fingers on the dashboard and looked around for the girls.

" _Things aren't all sunshine and roses for him though. The legendary guitarist and husband to Queen of Country Rayna Jaymes has never made any secret of his struggle with alcoholism in the past. We've just learned today that his father is suffering from cirrhosis and in need of a liver transplant to save his life. Deacon, if you're listening out there, brother stay strong. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family."_ The DJ went on.

Deacon's eyes went wide and turned the radio off in anger. He slammed his hand down on the dash. "Damn it!" He cussed loudly. The last thing he wanted was for that to get out. He was having a hard enough time wrestling with this decision as it was. He didn't need the press poking around and asking why he didn't give part of his liver to Paul. He didn't know how they'd found out about his, but he wasn't happy at all.

He put on a happy face when the passenger side doors opened and the girls climbed into the truck.

"Hi, dad," Maddie actually greeted him.

"Hi, Deacon,"Daphne chirped happily.

"Hi, my girls, did you have a good day at school?" He gave them a smile he didn't feel at all.

"I'm just glad school is over for the day." Maddie went to turn the radio on.

"No radio today. I wanna talk to my girls." He stopped her. He didn't want her to hear about his father from the radio. "Are you two excited to get some studio time in today?"

"Totally excited," Daphne put her seatbelt on.

"It's the only thing that has made today bearable. JC said that he is gonna come watch us record if he gets done with the song he's working on in time." Maddie replied.

"So, not even Colt could make today good for you?" He asked. He wasn't exactly sure what to say to her about her boyfriend.

"He was too busy with his stupid jock friends from the lacrosse team to really have time for me today. Plus, he's not really into country music. He's a DJ he likes music that he can play at parties." Maddie shrugged.

"It's good for you to both have friends, but you shouldn't ignore each other either. It's complicated and you will get the hang of it." He didn't know what else to say to her.

"I'm never going to have a boyfriend they seem like they are a lot of trouble and hard work." Daphne said.

"That's my girl, Squirt, you just remember that you said that." He chuckled. It never failed his kids could put a smile on his face no matter how bad of a day he was having.

* * *

"You wanted to see me, Rayna." Will held his hat in his hands as he walked into Rayna's office meekly.

"Yeah, come on in and have a seat, Will." Rayna smiled at him to put him at ease.

"I kinda feel like a kid bein' called to the principal's office because I did somethin' wrong." He took a seat.

"It's nothing like that, Will. I just have something that I have to discuss with you." She pulled up the pictures of him and Kevin on her computer and turned the screen around so he could see it.

"Uh, this is about that." He looked down at his feet.

"Do we need to make a statement to set this straight or do you want us to just let this go?" She asked him.

"Those pictures were taken out of context that's all." He offered lamely.

"The way I see it these pictures are either of two friends hanging out or they are of two consenting adults enjoying each other's company. Whichever the case may be I don't have a problem with it at all. The way I see it I have no room to say anything about anyone else I married a man that I didn't love and let him raise my daughter with the man I did love. I never stopped loving him the whole time I was married or when I almost married yet another man. I'm here if you ever need to talk or if you need anyone else in your corner." She looked into his eyes as she spoke so he'd know she was being sincere.

"I can't imagine that there are many bosses in this town that would want an openly gay cowboy on their label. I bet that would be pretty hard on all parties involved." He didn't confirm that he was gay, but he didn't deny it either.

"That would be your truth to tell to whoever you wanted to know. This label would be behind you one hundred percent no matter what that meant. That would be an extremely brave thing to do and I'd have a lot of respect for the person that did it." She spoke in the hypothetical. She reached over and took her phone off the hook when it kept ringing.

He chuckled when she said that because Maddie had said much the same thing to him when he'd come out to her. "I've heard that a time or two before. That's Deacon Man Wisdom one oh one right there." His expression grew serious. "Rayna, I'm gay and I'm just so, so tired or pretendin' to be somethin' that I'm not." He broke down crying the weight of everything he'd been trying to hold up came crashing down on him finally.

Seeing him cry like that flipped Rayna's mom switch to the on mode. She got up from behind her desk and cradled his head against her chest. "Shh, sweetie, it's ok. It's all gonna be ok. I don't know your story, Will, but I can promise you no matter what happens from here on out you will always have a place in my family." She rocked back and forth gently and ran her fingers through his hair. She got the sense that it had been a long time since he'd had any type of parental affection in his life. She just let him cry as long as he needed to.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to go all to pieces on you like that." Will sat up and dried his tears.

"You needed it there is no shame in it. I have two infant sons and a teenage daughter I'm used to tears. The only one that doesn't cry on me at the drop of a hat is Daphne." She smiled reassuringly.

"I've been on my own since I was seventeen. My dad found out that I was gay and he kicked me out of the house. I spent a lot of years driftin' around." He admitted.

"I was sixteen when my daddy kicked me out. You and I have that in common. The difference is I had Deacon. I think that took some of the sting out of it for me." She told him something that she didn't tell very many people.

"It takes all kinds of kinds I guess." He snorted.

"We can handle this however you want. You can take however much time you need. I want you to know that what you just told me will go no further than me. Bucky doesn't need to know about this just yet if you don't want that." She promised him.

"Tell Bucky I need to know that there is someone else covering my ass. I just don't know what else to do. I'm tired of livin' with this secret, but at the same time I'm scared to come out. It's not somethin' that I can rush. I feel like maybe Kevin wants me to and I'm just not comfortable with that yet." He ran his hands through his hair.

"You'll know when the time is right for you. If Kevin cares about you he will understand that and he will wait for you. I mean you can't expect him to wait the fifteen years I kept Deacon waiting, but I think it's reasonable for him to wait a few months. Like I said if he cares he'll wait and if not then he's just not the guy for you." She squeezed his shoulder.

He flashed her a smile. "Thanks for bein' so great about all this."

"You're welcome, I'm here any time that you need me don't ever forget that." She hugged him.

"Ray, I really hate to interrupt right now, but we have a situation." Bucky walked in without knocking.

"What's goin' on, Buck?" She asked. There was always a crisis or an almost crisis according to Bucky. She loved the man like a brother, but he could get wound up for no good reason.

"The press knows about Paul." Bucky told her.

"The party line is no comment." Rayna told him firmly. "Will, you take as much time as you need to collect yourself. I gotta go take care of this, I'm sorry to run out on you."

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. That must be about Deacon's dad. I just know what Scarlett's told me and then on the radio on the way over here." Will replied.

"Let's just say that Deacon is gonna need someone else to come up with some man wisdom pretty quick or he's gonna be under the jail somewhere." Rayna sighed and followed Bucky back to his office.

* * *

" _You're not sure that you love me, but you're not sure enough to let me go. Baby, it ain't fair you know to just keep me hangin' 'round. You say you don't wanna hurt me don't wanna see my tears. So, why are still standin' here just watchin' me drown?"_ Maddie pressed the headphone against her ear to better hear the instrument tracks.

" _And it's alright, yeah I'll be fine, don't worry 'bout this heart of mine. Just take your love and hit the road. There's nothin' you can do or say you're gonna break my heart anyway. So, just leave the pieces when you go."_ Daphne's voice joined in at the chorus.

" _Now you can drag out the heartache or, baby, you can make it quick really get it over with and just let me move on. Don't concern yourself with this mess you left for me. I can clean it up you see just as long as you're gone."_ Daphne took the next verse.

" _And it's alright, yeah I'll be fine, don't worry 'bout this heart of mine. Just take your love and hit the road. There's nothin' you can do or say you're gonna break my heart anyway. So, just leave the pieces when you go."_ The sisters' voices blended together again.

" _You not makin' up your mind is killin' me and wastin' time and I need so much more than that."_ Maddie showed off her range on that line.

" _Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah."_ They harmonized.

" _And it's alright, yeah I'll be fine. Don't worry 'bout this heart of mine. Just take your love and hit the road. There's nothin' you can do or say you're gonna break my heart anyway. So, just leave the pieces when you go. Leave the pieces when you go. Oh, yeah, leave the pieces when you go. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Leave the pieces when you go."_

"They sounded even better than we hoped they would when we wrote that song for them." Rayna stood in the doorway of the mixing booth studying Deacon's broad back as he worked the controls. She could see that his shoulder muscles were tense.

"I'm really pleased with the way that it turned out. I'm gonna have 'em run through it a couple more times, but I think that was the take I'm gonna go with. That was the first one where neither one of them overpowered the other. They both have these insane vocal ranges and they drown each other out if they aren't careful." Deacon didn't turn around to look at her he couldn't. If he turned around to look at her he would lose it when he saw the pity for him in her eyes and he couldn't afford to lose it in front of his girls.

"Listen to you, if you keep doing this well you'll just have to produce my next album for me." She tried to keep her tone light. They were still walking a tightrope when it came to his mood swings. No matter how hard he tried to control his temper sometimes it still got the better of him. "Honey, can you look at me please?"

He shook his head. "No, baby, I can't. If I look at you I'm gonna see the sympathy and the understandin' and the pity in your eyes and I'm gonna break down. I don't wanna do that here in front of the girls. I wanna wait until we are at home in our bedroom for that to happen."

She walked up and put her arms around his waist. She trailed kisses along his jawline and rubbed one of her hands up and down his abs. "Listen to me right now, Deacon John Claybourne. I feel a lot of things for you. I love you, I lust after you, I want to watch in daddy mode because you are absolutely amazing with our babies, I want to use you for your very sizable penis because you give me amazing orgasms, I want you in my life and in my bed always. You piss me off and make me laugh and a bunch of other things. Through it all the one thing I don't feel for you is pity I never have and I never will." Her tone was light, but the message was serious.

"You talkin' 'bout lustin' after me and my sizable penis ain't helpin' the situation. That's only makin' me frustrated and horny. I know that you're only tryin' to help and I really appreciate that, baby. I just can't focus on it right now. At the moment I'm workin' on my girls' song. I can't even think 'bout this gettin' out to the press and them findin' out 'bout it or what I'm gonna say to those two girls when they ask me how come I don't give him part of my liver? Cause that's the man the know me to be. I'd do anythin' for anyone and they know that. I don't wanna let them down even more than I don't wanna help him. How do I tell 'em that he was in prison for hurtin' their beloved mawmaw? How do I tell those two little girls 'bout somethin' that ugly?" He took a shuddering breath that turned into a silent sob. Against his wishes she'd gotten him to break down just like he knew she would.

"Baby, it's ok. It's gonna be ok. You just have to explain to them in a way that they can understand. I promise you that no matter what you do they are never gonna think any less of you. Those are your girls they know that you are a good man. And," She forced him to turn his head and look at her. "There is no way that they will ever think you are anything like Paul. You can tell them I promise that they won't be afraid of you." She could see in his eyes what he was so afraid of. She wiped his tears away with the pads of her thumbs.

"I'll be damned if you don't always know just what to say to make me feel better." He kissed her gently. "If you really wanna help me out right now, you'll head across the way and see how Jimmy is doin' with Layla. Avery is producin', but I don't exactly trust Jeff. And I'm havin' a hard time bein' around you without havin' my way with you. I can't get that outfit you had on earlier out of my head."

She discreetly reached down and squeezed his length over his jeans. "God, baby, you are rock solid. I'm gonna have to do somethin' 'bout that later. I better get out of here before the girls catch us misbehaving." She looked around and quickly ran her tongue around his ear. "And for what it's worth I thought you looked pretty damn hot earlier too." She left before he could do or say anything else. It was too big of a risk with both the girls on the other side of the glass.

" _Ohh,"_ Layla sang.

" _Ohh,"_ JC answered back. _"Whatcha doin' in this place?"_

" _Well, I could probably ask you the same."_ She looked over at him.

" _Another round, girl, what you think?"_ Instead of his typical cowboy hat today he wore a backwards ball cap.

" _If you're buyin' well you know I'll drink. So make it seven on seven."_ She winked at him when he looked her way.

" _Do you want it on the rocks?"_ He rolled his eyes playfully.

" _A double shot of heaven."_ She gave him a smirk.

" _Spillin' out the top."_ He bobbed his head to the beat of the music in his headphones.

" _And we'll go shot for shot for shot 'til we forgot what we came here to forget. Ain't a clock a tick a tock that's gonna stop a night we won't regret. So, put your drink down throw your camera up flip it around and snap a payback picture."_ They sang together.

" _I'll send it to my ex,"_ Her eyes went to Jeff in the sound booth.

" _I'll send it to my ex,"_ He nodded at Rayna who had just walked into the booth.

" _And send them both a text sayin' we ain't goin' home alone tonight."_ They came together again.

" _Girl you ain't gotta I ain't gotta go home alone tonight."_ He took over again. _"Slow country from a cover band."_

" _I got you covered if you don't know how to dance, but if you want we could grab a cab."_ She flirted with him.

" _Girl, we got all night I've got a bottomless tab. So let's go."_ He flirted back harmlessly.

" _Shot for shot for shot 'til we forgot what we came here to forget. Ain't a clock a tick a tock that's gonna stop a night we won't regret. So, put your drink down throw your camera up flip it around and snap a payback picture."_ They sang into the same mic and bumped their hips together.

" _I'll send it to my ex,"_ She sang in a sultry voice.

" _I'll send it to my ex,"_ He closed his eyes really getting into the song.

" _And send them both a text sayin' we ain't goin' home alone tonight."_

" _Girl, you ain't gotta I ain't gotta go home alone tonight."_

" _It feels too good to let it end right here."_ Their voices blended together.

" _I ain't goin' home alone tonight."_ He bit his lip.

" _So let's not let it end let it end right here."_ She looked into his eyes again.

" _Girl, you're goin' home with me tonight."_ He dug down deep on that line.

" _Shot for shot for shot 'til we forgot what we came here to forget. Ain't a clock a tick a tock that's gonna stop a night we won't regret. So, put your drink down throw your camera up flip it around and snap a payback picture."_

" _I'll send it to my ex."_

" _I'll send it to my ex."_

" _And send them both a text sayin' we ain't goin' home alone tonight."_

" _Girl you ain't gotta I ain't gotta go home alone tonight."_ He put a lot of feeling into it.

" _No, I ain't goin' home alone tonight."_ She sang.

" _Girl you ain't gotta I ain't gotta go home alone tonight."_ He repeated.

" _Baby, don't let me go home alone."_ She got really seductive.

" _Home alone tonight."_ He sang softly to end the song.

"I think after two days they finally got it." Avery clapped his hands.

"It's better than any other take that they've had so far." Jeff grudgingly agreed.

"I thought it was great." Rayna was very pleased with the way it sounded. "What did you think, Maddie?" She turned to her daughter who had joined them in the booth.

"Yeah, it was great, mom. I think that it'll be a hit." Maddie stammered over her words. "I should get back to dad and Daph. I told them that I would be quick." She excused herself quickly. She couldn't stand to watch JC and Layla flirt openly with each other any longer.

"If I didn't know any better I would say that someone was jealous." Jeff commented.

"Jeff, you seem to learn your lessons the hard way. Leave my daughter the hell alone." Rayna scoffed and rolled her eyes at him. "Layla, JC, that was great. We are gonna go with that take. Good job." She pressed the intercom button. She chuckled as she watched the pair high five.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Some interesting things are starting to come to a head here and I promise you that it is going to be well worth the wait. Until next time please review.


	34. Chapter 34

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is You Can Leave Your Hat On by Joe Cocker.

* * *

Chapter 34

"This looks like it's going to be a serious talk." Maddie looked between her parents.

Rayna sat on the couch holding Jaymes against her shoulder and Deacon paced the floor with Little Deacon in his arms. It was easy to see that he was in a highly agitated state. Holding his son was supposed to be keeping him calm, but that didn't seem to be working as well as it normally did.

Rayna laid Jaymes down on his play mat and grabbed her wine glass off the coffee table. She took a sip and then leaned forward with her elbows resting on her knees. "It is a serious talk. Daddy has something that he wants to tell you and Daphne, but it's hard for him to talk about. So, it's gonna take him a minute to work up the courage and we will be patient while he does."

"We didn't do anything wrong did we?" Daphne asked.

Deacon turned to face her and the look of wide eyed innocence on her face was like a knife to his heart. That look right there was what was making it so difficult for him to say what he needed to say. He laid Little Deacon down next to his brother. Clearly hiding behind his son wasn't working out for him. "Maddie, do you remember when I told you that my father isn't a nice man? That he was abusive to mawmaw, Aunt Bev, and me?"

Maddie nodded her head in confirmation.

"What I didn't tell you is he's still alive and I didn't tell you that he was in prison. He's out now because he's sick. He needs a new liver because he wrecked his drinkin'. On my worst bender I was an amateur compared to him. Anyway he's on the transplant list, but he's not quite sick enough to get a liver. Aunt Bev wasn't a match for him. I just wanted you both to hear it from me instead of the internet or the radio." He just made the words come out of his mouth. He didn't know if they made any sense or not. The only thing he cared about was getting it over with.

He watched with a slight smile on his face as Elvis laid down on the edge of the boys' play mat to watch over them. That dog was so protective over those babies that it wasn't funny.

"Can't you give him part of your liver, Deacon?" Daphne asked him.

"I don't know I haven't had the tests done. And I don't know that I want to. He wasn't very nice to me and I don't know that I want to help him or that he deserves it." It was hard for him to admit that he wasn't the man that his girls thought he was.

"But he's still your dad though. I mean if I'd found out about you later in life and you got sick wouldn't you want me to at least get to the test to see?" Maddie questioned him.

"No, no I would not. If I were sick like that I would have brought it on myself with my drinkin' just like he did and I wouldn't want anyone puttin' themselves at risk to save me from my damn fool self. I have you girls and those two little peanuts layin' in the floor to think 'bout. I wouldn't wanna leave ya'll without a daddy or in your and Daphne's case a second daddy if somethin' happened to me." He shook his head stubbornly.

"Girls, why don't you head on upstairs and finish up with your homework?" Rayna could sense that Deacon was on the brink of losing it and he wouldn't want that to happen in front of the girls.

The two girls headed upstairs without any argument.

"And you, why don't you take the boys upstairs and give them an early bath? I was thinkin' that we could get them settled down early and we can have the rest of the night for momma and daddy alone time." She got up and pulled his hips against hers by his belt loops. "Someone said something earlier about being frustrated and horny because I was talking about his very sizable penis. I also recall that he was hard as a rock when I checked." She reached into the front of his jeans and stroked his length a couple times through the open fly of his boxers.

"Jesus Christ, baby, you're gonna give me a heart attack doin' that. I want you so damn bad right now. You have no idea how hard it was for me not to pull you into a dressing room and bend you over earlier. Just in case you were wonderin' your ass looked damn good in those jeans." He growled in her ear.

She bit her lip and smirked at him. "Then you better go give those two peanuts a bath so we can have some time together before they wake up to be fed next." She slapped his ass playfully and sent him on his way.

* * *

Deacon opened the bathroom door after he'd finished bathing the boys and he found a note taped to it.

 _Deacon, you've had a bad day and I'm really sorry about that, baby. Let me do what I can to make it better. For that to happen you're going to need to follow my instructions to the letter._

 _Put the boys down in their nursery neither of us are going to be home for a little while and it's easier for your momma to tend to them there._

 _Once you've done that come back into the bedroom and put on the outfit I laid out on the bed for you._

 _When that's done get on your motorcycle and meet me over at our house I have your truck you will understand later. I will have further instructions for you once you get there._

 _I love you and I'm sorry that you are going through this right now. I hope what I have in mind for you makes your day a little better and takes your mind off things for awhile. –Rayna_

His eyes crinkled up in a smile after he'd read the entire note. He got the boys settled into their nursery. They very rarely slept in there because they slept in their parents' bedroom. Once he was sure they were good to go he returned to the bedroom. He found the outfit he'd had on earlier in the day laying on the bed. He quickly changed clothes without question. Something in his right hip pocket felt off and he reached his hand down in it.

He pulled out a pair of Rayna's black lacy panties with a post it note attached.

 _P.S. I'm not wearing any panties right now and you know how sexy that makes me feel. Hurry up before I start without you._

He didn't know how it was possible, but he got even harder than he already was. The jeans he was wearing were tight enough as it was without his raging hardon making things worse. He threw on his leather jacket and snuck out to the garage. He fired up his motorcycle and headed off in the direction of the new house.

The security gate was already open when he got there. He closed it behind him after he rode through it. He brought his bike to a stop behind his truck and put the kickstand down on it. His boots clicked against the wooden steps of the front porch. There was a note taped on the front door.

 _Heya, Cowboy, knock on the door to let me know you're here and I will tell you when you can come in. Leave the leather jacket on I will take care of taking that off of you myself._

He knocked on the door. He didn't know what she had cooked up, but it had him excited as hell.

"You can come in now," She called from the other side of the door in a sultry voice.

Deacon's jaw hit the floor when he walked into the house. "Oh my God,"

"Welcome home, Cowboy." Rayna stood there dressed in the outfit she had worn for the photoshoot. There was a fire going in the fireplace. She held two brown glass bottles in her hands and she handed one to him. "It's only root beer."

"I didn't figure that you were gonna pour alcohol down my throat." He grinned at her. "Now, what is this I hear about you not wearing panties?" He put his free hand on her ass and squeezed it. "Yep, that's all you underneath those jeans."

"Mmm," She purred with her face buried in his neck. "Not so fast. I had you bring your motorcycle for a reason. I want to ride that before I ride you."

"You're killin' me here, baby. I want you so fuckin' bad." He groaned.

"You're a patient, man, Cowboy. You waited a long time to be my husband it won't kill you to wait a few extra minutes for sex." She grabbed him by his hand and dragged him out to his bike.

He got on the bike and started it up. He was acutely aware of her breasts pressing into his back when she climbed on behind him. He could have sworn that he could feel heat radiating from the crotch of her jeans signaling she was just as aroused as he was. He cut his own path across the property as he drove the bike across it. The only illumination came from the headlight and the moon. He brought them to a stop on top of a hill that overlooked the lake.

The moon and stars shone off the lake like tiny little diamonds that had fallen from the sky. She got off the back of the bike and gestured for him to move back so she could sit in front of him. She took his arms and wrapped them around from behind. She smirked to herself when she felt his erection poking into her lower back. They sat there in silence just content to be with each other. There was no need to talk with them they had always communicated better without words anyway.

His fingers played with the hem of her vest while his lips explored her neck. He buried his face in her hair for a moment and inhaled her smell. The heady mix of lavender and jasmine intoxicated him and made his head dizzier than any shot of whiskey ever had. It took some doing, but his hands found their way up her vest. He cupped both her breasts reverently while his nimble fingers toyed with her nipples. He felt them turn into two hard points underneath his touch.

She moaned softly and arched back into him. A tiny mewling noise left her mouth when one of his hands left her chest and went to the crotch of her jeans. He rubbed the rough denim against her sensitive clit. She ground her ass back against his erection in retaliation.

They teased each other to the brink before backing off and doing it again. Finally, when they were both breathing heavy they decided it was time to take it back to the house. She got on the back of the bike again and let him drive them back to the house. Once inside she picked up a remote off the coffee table and music started to play.

 _Baby, take off your coat...real slow_

 _Baby, take off your shoes...here, I'll take your shoes_

 _Baby, take off your dress_

Rayna started dancing around seductively. She pushed his jacket off his shoulders and let it hit the floor. She untucked and started undoing the buttons on his shirt kissing each new patch of skin that came into view.

 _Yes, yes, yes_

 _You can leave your hat on_

 _You can leave your hat on_

 _You can leave your hat on_

Deacon's breath hitched in his throat when she came to his belt line. He sighed a bit in disappointment when she came back up and kissed his lips while she took his shirt off.

 _Go on over there and turn on the light...no, all the lights_

 _Now come back here and stand on this chair...that's right_

 _Raise your arms up in to the air...shake 'em_

Her hands went to his belt and undid it. She slowly pulled it out of the loops and tossed it across the room. She never once broke their kiss.

He kicked his boots off to make her job easier for her.

 _You give me a reason to live_

 _You give me a reason to live_

 _You give me a reason to live_

She unbuttoned and unzipped his pants before she shimmied them down his hips. She pushed him back on the couch and dropped down to her knees.

He groaned loudly when she kissed his erection over his boxers. It strained painfully against its fabric confines. He lifted his hips to help her get his boxers down.

 _Suspicious minds are talking_

 _Trying to tear us apart_

 _They say that my love is wrong_

 _They don't know what love is_

She took him into her mouth and swirled her tongue around the head like it was an ice cream cone.

"Oh, Ray, God baby. That is so fuckin' good." He cried out breathlessly.

 _They don't know what love is_

 _They don't know what love is_

 _They don't know what love is_

 _I know what love is_

He tangled his fingers up in her hair as she proceeded to give him the best blowjob he'd gotten since he couldn't remember when.

She took a deep breath in through her nose and took him completely down her throat.

He moaned and groaned as she worked her throat over him. It was possible that for a minute there he forgot how to form words much less sentences.

After a moment she pulled up off of him with a loud popping noise.

"No, baby, no. What are you doin'?" He whined loudly.

Rayna slowly undid the buttons on her vest before shedding it. She stood there with her full breasts on display her nipples sticking out proudly. "This next part is gonna be real easy for you, Cowboy. I want you to fuck me. I don't wanna love and I don't wanna be screwed. I wanna be fucked." Her voice was barely above a whisper. She kicked off her boots and peeled her jeans off.

"You're still as beautiful now as you were at sixteen." He told her. He studied her body like it was a work of art.

She straddled his lap and sank down on his length slowly. His more than ample girth always took her a little bit of time to adjust to no matter how many times they had sex. She put her hands on his shoulders to steady herself. "Christ, Deacon, your dick is so big, babe." She moaned.

Deacon gave her a moment to adjust to his size. He put his hands under her ass and moved her up and down his turgid member. "Ray, you're still as tight as you were the first time. He worked his hand in between them and rubbed her clit with the pad of his calloused thumb. He knew that he most likely wasn't going to last very long and he wanted to get her off at least once.

Rayna buried her face in his shoulder and bit down hard enough that there was sure to be a mark there later. It didn't take much more from the gentle pressure of his thumb to send her toppling over the edge into orgasm. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on for dear life.

He waited for her to ride out the wave of her orgasm before he stood with her legs around his waist and his dick still buried inside her. He put her back against the wall and started to pound into her like a freight train. He bit and sucked on her neck not caring if he left his mark on her.

She dug her nails into his back and raked them up and down. She could already feel herself on the verge again. "Deacon!"

His thrusts picked up in speed and intensity as he got closer to the edge. "Ray, I'm so close, baby so, so close." He almost pleaded with her for permission to come.

"Come for me, baby. I want you to." She whispered in his ear.

He came with what could only be described as a roar. She followed him over the edge a moment later. They collapsed in a heap on the rug in front of the fireplace panting heavily. They looked at each other each of them sweat covered and looking thoroughly laid and they bust out laughing.

"Holy shit, that definitely goes in our top five." He buried his face in her neck.

"For sure," She giggled. She ran her hands up and down his broad back. "Feel better now?"

"Baby, I'm pretty sure that just relieved five years' worth of stress. I feel much better." He smacked her bare ass.

"Deacon," She yelped and then she laughed. "I've been thinking about what I said the other night about having more kids. And I'm thinking that I owe you a baby girl." She told him. The thought had just popped into her head so she said it.

"You already gave me two perfect baby girls, but I'm not gonna argue with you there." He kissed her passionately.

"Yeah? You're in?" She smiled against his lips.

"I'm in, baby. I'm all in. As a matter of fact I'm still all in you." He laughed.

"Yeah, I can feel that." She kissed him and pushed her tongue into his mouth.

That led to another round of sex between them this one more tender and less frenzied than the last.

Deacon lay there rubbing his hand up and down her back with a thoughtful look on his face. "You know I'm gonna have to give him part of my liver if I'm a match don't you?"

Rayna's chin rested on her hands on top of his chest. She looked up at him from underneath her eyelashes. "I know, baby, that's what makes you such a good man." She kissed his chest. She didn't argue with his decision or try to talk him out of it. She knew that he hadn't come to it lightly and that it was hard for him. She thought that maybe just maybe this would be his way of getting closure on his past.

"We should get back to the kids. I gotta call my sister and get this all set up. I know that she's the one that leaked it to the press. I don't have any proof, but I don't need it. This is exactly something that Bev would do." He sighed and rolled out from underneath her.

"I know that too, babe. I tried to give her a million dollars to let it drop, but she wouldn't take it." She sighed too.

"I'm only savin' his life to get him out of mine. I have no interests in playin' happy family with him. You don't have to worry about that. I think I kinda like the idea of him owin' his life to me after the son of a bitch tried to kill me." He shrugged his shoulders and started putting his clothes on.

"Don't worry, baby, it will all work out the way it is supposed to." She gathered her clothes and started dressing as well. She paused to kiss his cheek.

"What was that for?" He smiled.

"Just because I love you. Thank you for bein' the good man that I know you are." She smiled back. "Now, do you wanna know why I brought the truck over here?"

"Yeah, that had me a little bit confused." He admitted.

"So, you can put the bike in the back. After the sex we just had there is no way that I can drive home, Cowboy." She winked at him.

"I don't know where this Cowboy nickname came from, but I'm likin' it." He grinned sexily.

"Then I'll save it for when I'm really horny and that way you'll know what it means." She pinched his ass for good measure.

* * *

"Deacon, I've got the results of the test that you took earlier today and it turns out the you are a perfect match for your father." Dr. Caleb Rand said the next afternoon.

Rayna, Deacon, Beverly, and Paul were gathered in his office.

"What does that mean?" Rayna asked.

"We went ahead and ran all the tests on Deacon's blood and it means that if he agrees to the surgery that he would be giving Paul two thirds of his liver. Don't worry though it will grow back." Caleb answered her.

"What are the risks?" That was Deacon's main concern and it would be the deciding factor in whether or not he did this.

"There are risks as with any surgery, but the risks to donors is minimal. The biggest complication is associated with antiesthetic. Chances are very high that you will come through this surgery with nothing more than a scar for your troubles. The recovery time is six to eight weeks." Caleb went into great detail.

"How soon can you do the surgery?" Beverly asked.

"If Deacon agrees to it we can do this surgery tomorrow. Paul's MELD score isn't horrible, but it isn't good either. You have to remember that we just found out he has liver cancer on top of the cirrhosis." Caleb reminded her.

"What if I stay on the list?" Paul asked.

"If you stay on the list chances are the tumor on your liver is going to grow out of control before we find you a donor. Your son is the best shot that you have." Caleb told him bluntly.

"Baby Brother, please. I know what I'm askin' of you." Beverly pleaded with Deacon.

Deacon shifted uncomfortably in his seat he crossed and uncrossed his legs and he looked at Rayna. She just nodded her head that it was his choice and she would support him no matter what he decided. "Ok, I'll do it. I ain't doin' it for that old bastard though. I'm doin' it for me. So I can look at my kids and know that I'm the man they believe me to be. Plus, I like knowin' that he's gonna owe his life to me." He said finally.

"Let me go through after care with you, Deacon. You'll need to take it easy for six to eight weeks after surgery. No lifting more than twenty pounds in that length of time and no strenuous physical activity. You can have sex when you're feeling up to it, but I recommend that you wait and make sure that you don't bust open your incision." Caleb laid out for him. If he was uncomfortable with the exchange he didn't let it show.

Deacon and Rayna shared a look when he mentioned waiting that long to have sex. "Alright, I can follow all those orders."

"In that case I will see you all back in here tomorrow." Caleb stood and shook hands with all of them.

"Thank you so much, Baby Brother." Beverly threw her arms around Deacon's neck and kissed him all over his face.

Deacon pulled away. "What else was I supposed to do, Beverly? You put me in an impossible position when you leaked his illness to the press. I was either gonna end up the bad son who wouldn't give his father his liver or the poor pathetic sap who drunk daddy used to beat the shit out of him."

"Deacon, I did what I had to do and I'm not gonna apologize for that." Beverly maintained stubbornly.

"Yeah well, it's bullshit. I shouldn't be fuckin' guilted into doin' anythin' for him after everythin' that he's put us through. That he's our father bullshit doesn't wash with me. Somethings don't get forgiven based on blood alone." Deacon's voice rose.

"Hey, you two aren't gonna do this here. Now is not the time or place." Rayna put her hand on his arm to calm him down.

"Rayna, he listens to you, so if you in anyway had anythin' to do with him decidin' to do this thank you." Beverly gave her the first kind word she'd spoken to her in years.

"I had nothing to do with this, Beverly. Deacon makes his own decisions he always has and he always will. He's risking not coming back home to his babies and to me over this. You better hope and pray that nothing happens to him. You think you can hold a grudge you've seen nothing like the grudge I'll hold if I lose him." Rayna finally took the gloves off. She was done playing nicely with her.

"Baby, I'm gonna be fine I promise. I wouldn't do this if I thought for a second that I wouldn't make it home to you and our babies and momma and Scarlett. Ya'll need me and I ain't goin' nowhere." Deacon pulled her to him and held her protectively.

"Your momma is in town?" Paul's eyes lit up.

"Yeah, and she doesn't wanna see your sorry ass." Deacon spit back at him.

"Can't say I blame her there. Last time I saw her she was handin' me divorce papers." Paul shrugged his shoulders like it didn't matter to him.

"Scarlett is here too, daddy. You haven't seen her since she was a little bitty girl. I'm sure that she would love to see you." Beverly chirped happily.

"I told you that I don't want him around my family, Beverly." Deacon warned her.

"I don't know if you remember this or not, but Scarlett is my daughter." Beverly shot back.

"You have a damn fine way of showin' it don't you?" Deacon fumed.

"Just if this is potentially my last night on earth I'd like to see my family and make things right." Paul broached the subject.

"Babe, what would one dinner hurt?" Rayna asked. She knew she shouldn't, but she pitied the old drunk.

"It may end with you havin' to bail my ass out of jail for killin' him." Deacon pointed out to her.

"If he can behave I'm sure that you can behave. I think if somethin' goes wrong with his surgery tomorrow you will forever regret not getting the chance to tell him how you really feel." Rayna was doing this for Deacon's benefit more than anything.

"Fine, but I don't want the girls or the boys around him. This man makes Lamar look like a saint. You know he's bad if I'm sayin' somethin' good 'bout your father given how he feels 'bout me." Deacon relented.

"Alright, babe, whatever you want. Let's get to the office for a little while. You're in your element there and you can relax a little bit." Rayna took his hand and rubbed her thumb over the back of it.

"Ok, you're right. Let's go babe." Deacon agreed. He would have agreed to anything to get away from his father and his sister at the moment.

* * *

A/N: Here's another new chapter for you. I was really on a roll today. Things got really interesting this chapter. Next chapter is gonna be even better. Until next time please review.


	35. Chapter 35

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 35

The muscles in Deacon's jaw bulged out from the way he was gritting his teeth. He wanted to be anywhere in the world, but where he was at the moment. Or rather he could do without a couple of the people who were currently sitting at the dinner table. He and Rayna had agreed that it made the most sense to have this dinner at his old place. That way if someone had an outburst it wouldn't be public knowledge. June had insisted on coming because she wanted to show Paul that he no longer held any power over her. She had also made dinner.

"This is really good, momma." Beverly told her mother.

"June, if you keep cookin' this way my personal trainer is gonna be gettin' a raise." Rayna attempted some levity.

"Mrs. Claybourne, this is amazing. I see where Scarlett gets her skills in the kitchen from." Gunnar said politely.

"This really is good, mawmaw." Scarlett added.

"Ya'll are just too kind. Beverly, you act like you don't have my cookin' all the time. Rayna, you can tell that personal trainer of yours to take a break. I need to get some meat on your bones. Gunnar, if I have to tell you one more time not to call me Mrs. Claybourne I don't know what I'm gonna do to you. Scarlett, if you want I'll give you the recipe and you can try it out on Gunnar. He's another one of those that needs to put some meat on his bones." June smiled warmly.

"You really out did yourself this time, June. You've always been a good cook, but this time it's extra good. Though it could be that I'm used to prison food too. This is the first home cooked meal I've had since I got out." Paul was on his best behavior.

"Thank you, Paul." June was polite, but not overly friendly with her former husband. "Deacon John, you're bein' awfully quiet tonight and you've barely touched your food that's not like you." She turned to her son.

"I was just thinkin', momma. This is good and I'm eatin'." Deacon gave her a smile that never quite reached his eyes.

"Boy, I will tell you what that Maddie is just like you. She gets the same look on her face that you have on yours right now and she gives me that same answer you just gave me when I ask her what's wrong. Deac is gonna be the same way. Jayme I think is gonna take after Ray and actually talk 'bout his feelings." June observed with a low whistle.

"Well, if ya'll would leave us alone and let us sort out our feelings we would answer you when we got good and ready to." Deacon made a weak joke.

"That is so not true. I can't tell you the number of times I've caught you sittin' behind that couch over there starin' out the window at nothin' because you were thinkin' 'bout a certain redhead. I'd know what was wrong with you but couldn't get you to say the words to save my life." Scarlett corrected him.

"I guess I just wasn't ready to talk yet." Deacon shrugged.

"Is that why Maddie's answer to every question I ask her is fine or whatever?" Gunnar asked.

"Gunnar, that could be because she's a teenage girl and have nothing to do with the fact that she is the female version of Deacon." Rayna laughed softly.

"One of ya'll wouldn't happen to have a picture of them would ya?" Paul asked his voice soft.

June pulled up a picture on her phone. "Here, that's a picture of the girls, the twins, and the dog. Scarlett, tell your grandfather who is who." She handed her phone to Scarlett.

"That's Maddie, that's Daphne, that's Deac, that's Jayme, and that is Elvis." Scarlett pointed out everyone in the picture for him.

"Those three sure do look like their daddy. Good thing Rayna has one that looks like her." Paul smiled a little. "Scarlett, I can't get over how grown up you are now. You were still a little bitty thing last time I saw you."

"It's been a long time." Scarlett gave him an uneasy smile.

"It's been twenty-three years." June threw out there.

Rayna marveled silently at how strong the older woman had grown since then. She could still remember the night that Paul had put her in the hospital like it was yesterday. It was the same night that Deacon had finally let her in completely and told her everything about his past.

* * *

Biloxi Mississippi 1992

Deacon, Rayna, and Vince sat around a table at the bar they had just played. The owner had shut it down for the night, but had been kind enough to invite them to stick around for an after hours' poker game.

"I see you two and I'll raise you two." Deacon said after studying his cards. He was wearing a denim shirt that was rolled up at the sleeves.

"I'll call," Vince looked up from under the brim of his cowboy hat. He wore a flannel shirt with the sleeves missing. "It's on you, Ray."

Rayna looked at her cards and threaded her fingers through the mass of frizzy red curls on her head. She knew how much that distracted both of the men sitting across from her and she needed all the help she could get. "I'll call," She tossed a couple poker chips into the center of the table.

"Look at that, Deac, your girl is bluffin'. She's tryin' to play ball with the big boys." Vince teased. He was always teasing Rayna about something. The two of them fought like brother and sister.

"She's totally, bluffin', Vinny, she ain't got shit." Deacon agreed.

Both mean laughed when she flipped them off.

"You can both go get fucked." Rayna told them cheerfully.

"Listen to the dirty mouth on you. What would Lamar say if he heard his little Belle Meade Princess talkin' like that?" Vince laid it on thicker.

"My daddy can go get fucked too for all I care." Rayna rolled her eyes. It took everything in her power not to strangle Vince sometimes.

"One of these days you two are gonna learn not to mess with her." Luke chimed in. His ponytail hung down from the back of his cowboy hat. He wore a sleeveless checkered shirt. Watty had arranged this tour for them and he was part of it. He hadn't played tonight, but he had still come to hear Rayna sing.

Bucky walked in his giant cell phone pressed to his chest. He ran a hand through his short brown hair. "I hate to interrupt whatever this is, but Deacon has a call. It's his sister."

"Ask her if I can call her back, Buck. I'm right in the middle of tryin' to take Vinny and Wheels Up's money." Deacon replied.

"She says it's urgent and frankly she sounds hysterical." Bucky replied.

"Is somethin' wrong with Scarlett or momma?" Deacon jumped up out of his seat.

"She didn't say she just insisted on speaking with you." Bucky reported.

"I'm sure that this is just Bev bein' Bev and I'm gettin' worked up for no damn reason. Play the rest of my hand for me and I'll be right back." Deacon accepted the phone from him and walked off so he could take the call.

"His sister is so dramatic when she wants to be. She will do anything to pull him back into her bullshit. She can't stand it that he has a life outside of her." Rayna scoffed.

"You can say that again." Vince agreed with her. Those two rarely agreed on anything, but they were in complete agreement about Beverly.

"Sounds like he comes from an absolutely wonderful family." Luke rolled his eyes. For the life of him he didn't understand at all what Rayna saw in Deacon. He drank too much all of the time and had a horrible temper to boot.

"Deacon is a good guy his family aside. It's a miracle he turned out as good as he did." Vince jumped to his best friend's defense. He could see that Luke had a thing for Rayna. He wasn't blind he was just drunk most of the time.

"His momma is really nice I've met her a couple of times. He's never said much about his daddy and I've never met him." Rayna added in.

Deacon came back into the room. His face was pale as a sheet and his hands were shaking. "Ray, I gotta go to Jackson. Momma is in the hospital and it's not good at all. That son of a bitch that no good son of a bitch I can't believe he finally did it." His face turned red with anger now.

"Deacon, what's wrong, babe?" Rayna looked at him concerned.

"I don't know Bev either couldn't or wouldn't say. I talked to a doctor. Bev is havin' some sort of break down or somethin' and there is no one there to take care of Scarlett. So, I need to go see momma and get the baby. I just gotta go. My grandparents are there, but they can't take care of her long term." Deacon answered.

"Ok, babe, we will go. We will go right now. What about your daddy?" Rayna got up and took his hand. "Buck, just go on and send the rest of the band to the next stop we will meet them there in a couple of days. I can't believe I'm saying this, but Vince is in charge."

"I'll explain on the way, Ray. We've got a three-hour car ride ahead of us." Deacon ran his hands through his hair.

"Sure, whatever you need, Ray, you've got it. Don't worry about anything and let me know what's going on." Bucky assured her.

Vince jumped to his feet. "No way, Ray, if you two are goin' to Jackson then I'm goin' with you. You're my best friends I'm not gonna let you face that alone." He shook his head stubbornly.

"Take my rental car I'll catch a ride on the bus." Bucky handed Deacon the keys.

"Thanks, Buck." Deacon clapped him on the back and headed out to the car.

The three of them piled into Bucky's car with Vince in the back and Rayna in the front beside Deacon holding his hand tightly.

"Deacon, you promised that you would explain more to me once we got in the car." Rayna said gently.

"Ray, this isn't easy for me to talk 'bout. As a matter of fact it's fuckin' hard as hell. You know how I haven't told you a lot 'bout my family and I've never let you meet my father?" Deacon replied.

"Yeah," Rayna nodded her head.

"There's a reason for that. Paul that's the man that fathered me. He uh, he's abusive. And not he gets a little mean every now and then like your daddy when I say abusive I mean just that. He's a mean drunk that likes to beat on his wife and kids. When I was around eight I had enough and I started fightin' back. I got my ass kicked, but he left momma and Bev alone. Finally, when I was around thirteen I put him on his ass and he didn't touch one of us again. Expect for the night I graduated he went after me again and I kicked his ass again. I left Natchez a few hours later and I met twinkle toes in the backseat my first night in town." Deacon gave her a condensed version of his shitty childhood.

"Baby, I'm so sorry I had no idea." Rayna gasped. In their three years together he'd never said that much about his childhood before.

"It's because I don't like to talk about it. Vinny knows about it, because we used to swap horror stories." Deacon set his mouth in a hard line. He'd already said more than he wanted to say.

"Babe, what's going on with your momma?" Rayna asked.

"Paul that son of a bitch beat her so badly that he put her in the hospital. I don't know the details exactly. I just know that they had to transfer her to the hospital in Jackson for treatment." Deacon took a shuddering breath.

"Deacon, I don't know what to say." Rayna searched for the right words, but words failed her.

"You could run while you still have the chance. You didn't sign up for all of this. I wouldn't blame you one little bit if you wanted to be done with me. You didn't even have to come. This is my mess to clean up. If I hadn't left he wouldn't have touched her again because I would have been there to protect her. This is on me." Deacon did everything he could to keep from crying.

"You listen to me right now, Deacon John Claybourne. I am right where I want to be and I'm not gonna go anywhere. We are gonna go get our niece and take care of her for as long as we have to. I will be right by your side the whole time. This was not your fault at all. You're not the one who did this to her he is. It is on him not you." Rayna told him firmly.

"Deac, you can't talk like that man. This isn't on you, brother. It's on Paul like it's always been on Paul. It wasn't your job to stay there the rest of your life and make sure that he kept his hands off of her. You'd have ended up in jail or just as crazy and mean as he is." Vince patted his shoulder.

"I guess you two are right. I just won't be able to breathe easy until I know more about momma." Deacon sighed.

"Baby, everything is gonna be ok." Rayna squeezed his hand tighter and moved over in the seat so she could lay her head on his shoulder while he drove.

They rode the next two and a half hours to Jackson in silence save for sound of Vince snoring in the back seat.

"Hey, Vinny, wake your ass up we're here." Deacon reached into the back seat and hit Vince to wake him up.

Vince snorted and sat straight up. "I'm up, I'm up." He pulled his hat up off of his eyes and fixed it on his head.

They walked into the hospital through the emergency room.

"Hi, we are looking for June Claybourne." Rayna told the nurse working the desk.

"Are you family?" The nurse asked in a bored tone.

"This is her son and I'm his girlfriend." Rayna explained patiently.

"Mr. Claybourne, you mother is in room three oh two you can go right back." The nurse told them.

Deacon had a death grip on Rayna's hand as they walked to his mother's room. "I'm scared, babe." He whispered lowly.

"I know, sweetie, I know." Rayna rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb.

"I can wait out in the hall if you want." Vince offered.

"Don't be silly, she loves you. She needs to know that she had a lot of people in her corner pulling for her to get better." Deacon brushed off his concern.

June's doctor approached Deacon before he could walk in the room to see her. "Mr. Claybourne?" He looked between Deacon and Vince.

"I'm Deacon Claybourne." Deacon said.

"I'm Dr. Stan Griffin your mother's doctor. Before you go in to see her I thought I'd give you a run down of what's going on. She has a fractured eye socket, a ruptured eardrum, a collapsed lung, a fractured jaw, a severe concussion, some broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder, and some minor bumps and bruises." Dr. Griffin reported.

"What does that mean? What is gonna happen?" Deacon questioned.

"They will do surgery in a few hours to repair her eardrum. Luckily there are no other internal injuries are any bleeding. All things considered this could have been much worse than what it was. She indicated that your father did this to her. Does that sound about right to you?" Dr. Griffin answered him.

"Yeah, that sounds about right to me." Deacon nodded his head.

"Ok, now I'll tell you about your sister. Apparently the stress of all of this was too much for her to handle and she's had a breakdown. She's been admitted to the psych ward for observation from there she will be watched for seventy-two hours and a recommendation will be made to either release her or send to a long term program." Dr. Griffin added.

"Thank you, what about my niece?" Deacon asked.

"She is with your grandparents right now, but they are waiting for you to get here and take charge of her." Dr. Griffin replied. "If there's nothing else I will let you go in and see your mother now."

"I don't have any other questions right now." Deacon told him.

"Just let one of the nurses know if you need anything at all." Dr. Griffin said before taking his leave.

Deacon walked in the room holding Rayna's hand. Vince walked in behind them. Deacon gasped when he saw the state his mother was in. She had wires and tubes coming out of her all over and her face was a massive purple and black bruise. One of her eyes was swollen shut.

"Momma, I'm here." He took her hand gently so he didn't hurt her anymore than she already was.

"Deacon John, is that you?" June tried her best to smile, but she winced because it hurt.

"Yeah, momma, it's me." Deacon bent down and kissed her forehead.

"I'm sorry about bein' so much trouble. Are Rayna and Vince with you?" June asked him.

"They are right here. You're not any trouble at all." Deacon confirmed.

"My two adopted babies came to see me. Come here where I can see both of you." June ordered them.

Rayna and Vince stepped into her line of sight.

"Hi, June, it's good to see you again." Rayna smiled down at her and tried to keep her tone light.

"Hey, Momma June, look at this fine mess you've got yourself in. You need to take this time to rest up and let them get you better." Vince too kissed her forehead.

"I'm gonna be just fine. Ya'll didn't have to make the trip up here to see about me. I know that you have that big important tour that you're on right now." June was very happy to see them.

"Of course we had to come see you. You are more important than any tour." Rayna replied.

"Ya'll boy get on out of here I wanna have a word with this girl. And then I want you to go find Scarlett. We promised her that her Uncle Deac and Aunt Ray would be here to see her soon." June issued a set of orders.

"Babe, I'll be right outside the door waitin' for you when you're done." Deacon said before he and Vince walked out.

"Deac, I'm gonna go get us some coffee. I'll meet you out in the waitin' room when you're finished up here." Vince clapped him on the back and went off in search of coffee.

Rayna emerged from June's room a few minutes later. Her eyes were red rimmed and her mascara had run from crying.

"Baby, are you ok?" Deacon asked her.

"I'm fine, babe. Come on, we need to go find Scarlett she needs us right now." Rayna offered him a small smile.

"You're right, let's go." Deacon took her hand.

An older man wearing a pair of overalls with a headful of gray hair sat in the waiting room with a silver headed woman in a pink housedress. A little girl of about two sat on his lap. Vince came into the waiting room at the same time.

"Pawpaw, mawmaw, I'm here." Deacon said as they approached them.

"Uncle Deac," Scarlett squealed.

"Scarlett, there's my favorite niece." Deacon scooped her up in his arms and kissed her all over her face. "Look here, Uncle Vinny, I've got me a little love bug." A smile came to his face for the first time since Beverly had called.

"You better let me see that bug and stop hoggin' her." Vince stole Scarlett from him and he too smothered her with kisses.

"Stop, Uncle Vinny," Scarlett giggled.

"You two better leave her alone." Rayna took her from Vince. "Come here, sweet girl, those two boys can be a pain. I know they don't know how to properly love on a little girl." She hugged her to her chest.

"Hi, Aunt Ray." Scarlett threw her arms around her neck.

"Scarlett, Aunt Ray is gonna take you for a walk while I talk to Big Paw and Ma. I'll come get you when I'm done ok?" Deacon rubbed his nose against hers.

"Ok, Uncle Deac." Scarlett agreed.

"Come on, Uncle Vinny, let's go get this bug some hot chocolate." Rayna jerked her head to the side in a signal for him to give Deacon some time alone with his grandparents.

"I'm comin'." Vince put his arm around her shoulders in a show of brotherly affection.

* * *

They managed to make it through dinner without Deacon killing Paul. Things hadn't even really gotten tense. They were just getting ready to move on to desert when the front door opened. Daphne walked in ahead of Maddie and JC who each carried one of the boys in their car seat.

"There are my babies. You came just in time for desert." June exclaimed happily.

"Hi, Mawmaw June." Daphne hugged her around the waist.

"Alright, I helped get the little dudes in. I'm gonna take this opportunity to be elsewhere." JC said.

"Jimmy, I wouldn't have asked you to bring the girls over just to kick you out. Please join us." Deacon told him. He got up and took the boys out of their seats.

"Really, June needs someone else to fuss over. I'm gonna be as big as a house if she doesn't have anyone else to put her attention on." Gunnar pushed out a chair for him.

"Please stay, JC." Maddie begged him. She didn't know what exactly was going on, but she was sure she was gonna need a distraction.

"Deacon, what are you up to?" Rayna got up and took Little Deacon from him.

"I want him to see exactly what he's missin' out on. I can protect them from him. It's gotta kill him just a little bit that he has grandsons and he doesn't get to be part of their lives." Deacon replied. "It's one of those things that I would regret if he dies tomorrow."

"Babe, you know that I support you no matter what. Just do what you need to do." Rayna kissed his cheek.

"Ok, try to keep up here. Maddie, Daphne, you already know Aunt Bev. The guy sittin' next to her is Paul. He's my father." Deacon said evenly. "Paul, the one that looks exactly like me is Maddie and the little smiley one is Daphne. Those are my girls. Now for the boys. The guy is Rayna's arms is Deacon Jr. and the one I'm holdin' is Jaymes. We call 'em Deac and Jayme."

"Hi," Maddie said.

"Nice to meet you." Daphne waved at him.

"They sure are some handsome little guys. They look even more like you in person than they do in their pictures." Paul smiled. "It's nice to meet ya'll too. Deacon John sure thinks the world of ya'll." Both of Deacon's parents almost always called him by his full name.

"Thank you, Paul, we like to think they are too. I carried them for nine months, went through eight hours of labor, and didn't sleep well for six months, but they came out looking just like their daddy." Rayna smiled.

"Jimmy, Gunnar, why don't you two go get desert from the kitchen?" June asked the two young men.

"We would love to." Gunnar jumped up to do as she'd asked.

"I have beer and wine in the fridge if anyone wants anythin'." JC offered.

"Why do you have wine, JC?" Scarlett asked him.

"Will and Kevin were over the other night and Kevin drinks wine. Go figure." JC shrugged his shoulders.

"Deacon, I know this may be pushin' my luck, but do you think I could hold my grandsons?" Paul asked hopefully. He really couldn't ask him for anything more, but he was.

Deacon thought it over for a minute. He looked at Rayna and she shrugged as if to say it was up to him. "Yeah, I think just this once won't hurt anythin'." He agreed to it. He just didn't have it in him to be a complete bastard to the man no matter what he'd done to him. He settled both the boys in each of his arms. He hovered over them ready to grab them if he needed to.

"Hello, it is very nice to meet you two. I'm your daddy's old man. You passed down some bad genes to you and I'm sorry 'bout that. You two may look like me, but I hope like hell you are never anythin' like me." Paul placed a kiss on each of their heads. That was as close to an apology as he had ever come.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter, I hope you guys enjoyed it. I had to throw the flashback in there and there are more where that came from. I plan on doing this surgery right. Deacon and Paul are in for a little heart to heart next chapter and there are a few more exiting things still in store. I'm not done with this story by a long shot. Until next time please review.


	36. Chapter 36

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is All We'd Ever Need by Lady Antebellum.

* * *

Chapter 36

"You have a beautiful family you know?" Paul and Deacon were out on the front porch.

"I know that." Deacon nodded his head. He shoved his hands in his back pockets.

"If you got somethin' you need to say to me say it. I may not be 'round this time tomorrow for you to say it." Paul told him.

"For the longest time I hated you and then I became you. I hated you even more for that. I don't hate you anymore, now I just pity you." Deacon admitted.

"You have every right to feel that way 'bout me. I've never given you any reason not to." Paul took that statement in stride.

"You were never there to show me how a man should act. I had to figure that all out on my own. I never want my kids to feel 'bout me the way I feel 'bout you. All I ever learned from you was how to lift the bottle to my lips. Maddie asked me once why I drank and I didn't know the answer to that question until right this minute. It was because of you. I'm not blamin' you for my actions I made those choices myself, but your actions sure drove me in that direction." Deacon replied.

"How do you mean?" Paul asked.

"It took me a long time to get the image of momma layin' in that hospital bed after you beat her out of my head. I tried to drown it and I never quite succeeded. I already drank too much before that, but that drove me further into the bottle. I blamed myself for not bein' there to protect her. If only I'd stayed in Natchez you wouldn't have thought of puttin' your hands on her again. Took me until just now to figure out that wasn't my fault. I saved myself by leavin'." Deacon looked at the ground and sighed.

"If you'd stayed you probably would have become me. We could be on the liver transplant list together." Paul mused.

"Yeah, probably. Why'd you hate me so badly that you tried to kill me?" Deacon asked.

"I didn't hate you so much as I resented you. You and Bev both. If your momma hadn't gotten pregnant then we could have made a go of our music career. Bev at least learned her place you had the balls to stand up to me that made it worse on you. That and the fact that my daddy actually approved of you. I never could get his approval no matter what I did. Truthfully I don't remember much 'bout that night I was on a three-day bender." Paul told him honestly.

"If I'd killed you that night it would been your fault, but I would have had to live with it. It's not my fault pawpaw thought more of me than he did of you. If it hadn't been for him I'd probably still be in Natchez." Deacon retorted.

"I admire you, you know? You're one of the only people who has ever had the balls to stand up to me. No matter how many times I knocked you down you got up and kept comin' back for more." Paul licked his lips to moisten them.

"That and a dollar will get me a crappy cup of coffee. Just so we are clear as soon as you are healed up from this surgery I want you gone. This is my town and it isn't big enough for the both of us. You can be anywhere, but here. I can't have you around my family I don't trust you and I never will." Deacon told him before he could get the idea that he actually wanted him in his life. He'd had enough conversation so he went into the house.

* * *

"Deacon, are you sure that you want to do this? You can always back out." Rayna watched as he changed out of his jeans and t-shirt and into a hospital gown.

"I'm sure I wanna do this, Ray. I can't back out now. If there were anyway for me to I would take it. I have to do this, babe. I promise that when this surgery is over I am comin' home to you and our babies. I wouldn't take this risk if I weren't sure of that." Deacon held his arms open to her. He'd already said his goodbye to the girls before he left the house. Tandy was dropping them off at school and then she would meet Rayna up at the hospital. The boys were with Lamar for the day.

"I love you, you are the best man that I have ever known. I just got you back you can't leave me now." She buried her face in his neck.

"I love you too, babe. I'm not goin' anywhere. I'm gonna get out of this hospital in a few days and I'm gonna be on your nerves so bad you'll wanna go to work just to get away from me. The contractor is gonna get to work on our new home and then we will move in and we will raise up our sons there and maybe add another little girl to the mix. We are gonna have a great life together we just have to get over this speedbump first. I spent all night last night makin' love to you and that won't be the last time it happens." He kissed the top of her head.

She looked up at him and pressed her lips to his tenderly. "Damn right it won't be the last time it happens. If you even think about dying on me I will kick your ass so hard." She warned him.

He smiled against her lips and drew her into his lap. "I'll take that under advisement. Now, come here you. I ain't gonna be able to love on you like this for a few weeks."

"You do know that we are breaking that no sex rule just as soon as you feel up to it don't you?" She giggled.

"I'm well aware, babe." He kissed her passionately just because he could.

"We are so sorry we didn't mean to interrupt anythin'." Scarlett averted her eyes.

Gunnar blushed red and looked down at his feet.

Rayna stood up and straightened her clothes. "Trust me on this one that is far from the first time anyone has walked in on us, but we really were only kissing."

"I just wanted to come wish Uncle Deacon luck before his surgery." Scarlett explained.

"Come here, sweetheart." Deacon held his arms open to her.

Scarlett hugged him tightly. "I love you. You're gonna be just fine. You're the only dad I've ever known so you have to be fine. I need you, the girls need you, and those two sweet baby boys need you."

"I love you too, honey. You're right I'm gonna be fine." Deacon reassured her.

Gunnar walked over and shook Deacon's hand. "Good luck,"

Deacon grabbed him by the arm and pulled him down so he could whisper in his ear. "If anythin' happens to me you love that girl and you take care of her she's gonna need you. Promise me, Gunnar."

Gunnar nodded his head. "I promise,"

"Good man." Deacon smiled at him.

"They are ready to take Deacon back to prep now." Caleb said from the doorway.

Rayna gave him one last kiss. "I love you, baby, and I will see you when you get out."

"I love you too, Ray. I will see you in a little while." Deacon replied.

Rayna walked out of the room with Gunnar and Scarlett.

"Gunnar, what did he say to you?" Scarlett questioned.

"Nothing he was just being a dad that's all." Gunnar replied.

"I'm gonna go to Paul's room and check on June. I'll meet ya'll out in the waiting room." Rayna told them.

"Alright, we will see you out there." Scarlett gave her a gentle smile.

Rayna walked in the direction of Paul's room. She stood in the door way for a moment while June spoke to her ex husband.

"Paul, I just stopped by to talk to you before your surgery because I have things I need to say to you. Because of our son you're gettin' a second chance don't waste it and don't squander the gift that he's givin' you. He's ten times the man that you'll ever be. I wanted you to know that just in case you die on that table." June told him.

"June, I didn't ever do right by you, but I did love you very much at one point. Somewhere along the way I guess I forgot how to show it." Paul replied.

"You may have loved me at first, but you stop actin' like it a long time ago. I still loved you long after you'd stopped treatin' me like a husband is supposed to treat a wife. I made excuses for you and I stayed with you. I don't know how many times I lied to my children and told them daddy's sorry or daddy loves you after you'd done another horrible thing to one of them. And I'd have to take them to yet another hospital so I didn't lose the only good things I had in my life. Bev would go to school with purple welts on her legs where you beat her with a belt. Or I would go to work all black and blue because dinner wasn't to your likin'. But you saved the brunt of it for my sweet Deacon John because you knew I loved him the most and he was the one who dared to stand up to you. He was eight years old and he took every beatin' that was meant for me or Bev for the next five years. You tried your best to beat the humanity outta him, but guess what? You lost, Paul. He became the best man I've ever known. He won look at the position you're in right now. A lesser man would have let you die. Think about that." June unleased years' worth of anger and frustration on him.

"I never stopped lovin' you. I still love you now. Livin' without you has damn near killed me, baby." Paul's bottom lip trembled.

"I don't love you anymore, Paul. It took me a long time to get to this point, but I'm finally happy and free. I gotta go now I gotta go wait for my baby to get outta surgery." June turned on her heel to go.

"June, wait," Paul put his hand on her arm gently. "I'm sorry. I never said it before, but I'm sayin' it now. I'm sorry I was a bastard and I'm sorry I never gave you the life that I promised you."

"Too little too late, Paul. Your sorry doesn't mean a damn thing to me." June pried his fingers off her arm. "Bev went to go get some coffee she should be back to be with you soon."

"June, you ready to head out to the waiting room?" Rayna asked. She'd stayed quiet while she'd said what she needed to say.

"I'm ready, sweetie. How's my boy?" June asked.

"They just took him back to get him ready. They should be coming for Paul any time now." Rayna put a gentle arm around her shoulders.

"Let's go wait for him to get out." June let her daughter-in-law lead her to the waiting room.

"Here you go, Aunt Ray, we brought you a latte." Scarlett put a coffee cup in Rayna's hand.

"June, here's your coffee." Gunnar handed June a cup. "We got Tandy something too."

"You are both so sweet, thank you for this." Rayna sat down and began bouncing her knee up and down.

"JC wanted us to tell you that if you need anything before he picks the girls up from school for you to just call him." Scarlett reported.

Rayna gave a half smile. "That kid idolizes Deacon he always has." She settled in for a long wait and let herself get lost in her memories for a little while.

* * *

Jackson, Mississippi 1992

Deacon's legs were splayed out in front of him crossed at the ankles. His head was thrown back and his mouth was open. Scarlett was curled up in a ball on his chest her little butt stuck up in the air. Her thumb was securely in her mouth her uncle's hand rested protectively in the center of her back. Rayna's head rested on the right side of Deacon's chest his was slung around her out of habit. Her feet were thrown across Vince's lap. Vince was stretched out in a similar fashion to Deacon. His chin was tucked down to his chest and his cowboy hat was pulled down over his eyes. His hands rested on top of his chest and his fingers were laced together. Soft snoring noises came out from underneath his hat.

They had been in the hospital all day waiting for them to finish up with June's surgery. Deacon's grandparents had left as soon as the sun had come up they just couldn't sit around any longer it was too hard on their bodies. Trying to entertain a two-year-old in a hospital was a feat, but she had been so good all things considered. Rayna would shoot Deacon and Vince a look every time they got her riled up and then she would have to get her calmed down again.

"I'm looking for the family of June Claybourne." A surgeon walked into the room wearing scrubs and a surgical cap.

Deacon sat up carefully so he didn't disturb Scarlett. "I'm her son." He whispered softly.

Rayna was awake the minute he moved. "Do they know anything?"

"Ray, take the baby so I can go find out." Deacon transferred Scarlett into her arms.

"Shh, baby girl, you're ok." Rayna rubbed her back and made soft shushing noises to get her back to sleep.

"What's up, doc?" Deacon asked the doctor.

"Mr. Claybourne, we were successfully able to repair your mother's eardrum, eye socket, and collapsed lung. She's doing very well and she's in a room now if you would like to see her." The doctor reported.

"Do you know how long she's gonna have to stay here?" Deacon ran his hand over his thick five o'clock shadow.

"A day or two at the most. We will be able to better answer that question in the morning." The doctor replied.

"What room is she in?" Rayna asked.

"Room three-twenty." The doctor answered her.

"Want me to take her?" Deacon reached for Scarlett.

"No, babe, she needs a diaper change and I wanna clean her up a little bit before we take her to see your momma. You just get Vince up while I do that." Rayna pecked his lips.

Deacon took Vince's hat off of his face. "Vinny, get your up. We can go see momma as soon as Ray changes the baby."

Vince stretched out all of his muscles with a loud groan. He combed his hair back with his fingers and got to his feet. "Let's go see Momma June."

Ten minutes later they walked into June's room. Scarlett clung to Deacon's side like a little monkey.

Rayna carried a vase of flowers in her arms.

Vince carried an assortment of 'Get Well Soon' balloons in. He also carried a teddy bear.

"Look at this my babies came to see me and they brought gifts." June's voice was horse. Despite the fact that she'd just had surgery she looked better than she had when they'd brought her in. She winced in pain as she sat up.

"Scarlett, let's give mawmaw kisses and make her feel better." Deacon kissed his mother's cheek first to show her that there was nothing to be afraid of.

Scarlett followed suit. "Love you, mawmaw."

"Mawmaw loves you too, sweet girl." June smiled as best as she could.

Rayna sat the flowers on her windowsill. "There you go a little something to brighten up the room."

Vince tied the balloons around the vase and sat the teddy bear down on the bedside table. "That's for you, gorgeous." He kissed her cheek.

"I appreciate ya'll so much, but you should get out of here. That poor baby has been in this hospital since last night. I'll be fine on my own I promise." June told them.

"Are you sure, momma? I don't want you to have o be all alone." Deacon fretted.

"I'm positive, Deacon John. Get on out of here and take Scarlett to the house. You can come back in the mornin'. Right now I just really wanna rest." June reassured him.

"In that case we are gonna go, but we will be back to see you in the mornin'. You get some rest. I am a phone call away if you need me." Deacon kissed her cheek again.

* * *

Rayna was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of clicking heels on the tile floor. "Sadie, what are you doing here, girl?"

"I heard about Deacon from Bucky and if it were me layin' up in that bed there is no doubt in my mind that he would be here waitin'." Sadie sat down across from her.

"Thank you for coming. It'd mean the world to him and it means the world to me." Rayna smiled at her. "June, this is Sadie Stone. She is a very dear friend of Deacon's and of mine. Sadie, this is June Claybourne, Deacon's momma."

"It's nice to meet you, Sadie." June smiled warmly at her.

"It's nice to meet you too, Mrs. Claybourne. You have one hell of a son." Sadie replied.

"Thank you. My name is June please call me by it. Ask Gunnar what I'll do if you don't." June laughed.

"Sadie, just call her June." Gunnar advised her.

Tandy jumped up when her phone rang. "Excuse me I have to take this it's Bucky. I'll be right back." She excused herself to take the call.

Beverly paced back and forth like a caged animal. "We should have heard somethin' by now. They said that they would be out to update us periodically."

"Beverly, it's only been an hour. They have to take Deacon's liver out before they can get started on Paul's surgery." Rayna tried to placate her. She fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"Momma, why don't you come sit down? You can relax a little bit. It's gonna be awhile yet. Until then no news is good news." Scarlett tried her hand.

"I'm too nervous to sit, Scarlett. You should be more worried than what you are. That is your only grandfather." Beverly shot back.

"Beverly, don't be like your father." June called her down.

Tandy walked back into the room a moment later. "Babe, there are a couple of situations developing right now and Bucky would like to know how you want him to handle them. You up for a little work? It'll take your mind off of worrying about Deacon. He's gonna be fine. I threatened with everything under the sun if he even thinks about dying."

"Yeah, I guess I can do a little work. Worrying isn't going to do anything, but give me a migraine." Rayna sighed.

"I'll start with Will. He decided that today would be a good day to come out. He went on national TV after Kevin had said that there was nothing going on between the two of them and announced that he's gay. The phones are ringing off the hook and Bucky doesn't know what to tell the press." Tandy explained.

"He can tell the press that the label stands behind him one hundred percent. He's a very talented artist and we look forward to great things from him in the future. He's part of the Highway Sixty-five family and we aren't going to turn our back on him." Rayna crafted a statement off the top of her head.

"Ok, I will let him know." Tandy nodded her head in agreement.

"You said that there were a couple of situations. What's the other?" Rayna asked. She was pretty sure that she didn't have to ask though she already knew.

"Juliette marched into the office with a finished album this morning. When Bucky told her that there was no rush and she could take her time she walked out and said that Highway Sixty-five doesn't deserve her album. She fired Glenn and Emily and she's signed with Jeff as her new manager." Tandy informed her.

"That girl I swear. I don't know what I'm gonna do with her. It was bad enough when I had to deal with him as Layla's manager. I will handle it tomorrow." Rayna groaned.

"There's more. She went over to Wheelin' Dealin' and Luke signed her. He's asking for the rights to her masters." Tandy gave her the other part of the news.

"You're kidding me right?" Rayna's jaw hung open in disbelief.

"No, I'm not kidding. While we are on the subject of that jackoff on the same call he informed Bucky that he is dropping Will from his tour because he's gay." Tandy added.

"Tandy, you get me a meeting with that son of a bitch. The two of us need to have a conversation about some things. I was nice before because yeah I kinda led him on and let him believe that I felt more for him, but now he is gonna play with the Wyatt side of me for real. Fuckin' big hat wearin' bastard. He's damn sure usin' the size of that hat to compensate for somethin'." Rayna fumed.

Scarlett put her hand over her mouth and tried to stifle her laughter, but it came out as a snort. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't laugh, but I just can't help it. She sounded exactly like Uncle Deacon just now."

From the stress of the day everyone else broke out into uncontrollable laughter.

"She did sound just like him. I can hear him sayin' that." Beverly laughed.

"Where do you think I heard it? He said those exact words and I got on to him for it." Rayna grabbed her sides.

"That wasn't quite loud enough to be a Deacon outburst, but it was close enough." June wiped the tears from her eyes.

Will showed up a little while later. "Well, I did it."

Rayna got up and hugged him. "I am so proud of you. That was incredibly brave and I want you to know that I'm not gonna let Luke get away with what he's trying to do to you."

"I knew it was a risk, but I had to take it. For the first time in my life I think I'm actually in love." Will hugged her back. "How's Deacon?"

"I'm really happy for you, honey. So far so good. We still have a few more hours left to go. You don't have to sit here and wait." Rayna told him.

"Sure I do. Deacon has been really good to me and I wouldn't feel right not being here." Will claimed an empty seat next to Gunnar.

Not long after Will came in JC showed up with the girls. They stopped by the house to change out of their uniforms first. He carried his guitar in.

"How's dad?" Maddie asked.

"How's Deacon?" Daphne asked at the same time.

"He's doing good." Rayna hugged them both to her. She felt better having two of her children there with her. "How were your brothers doing?"

"Jayme spit up all over pawpaw and Deac was laying in the floor next to Elvis." Daphne reported with a giggle.

"That sounds like my Jayme and my Deac. One of them is content with the dog and the other one is spitting up." Rayna laughed softly.

Maddie sat down next to JC and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Wanna try that new song out while we have an audience?" JC asked.

"Sure, that would be great." Maddie agreed.

JC picked up his guitar and started playing.

" _Boy, it's been all this time and I can't get you off my mind and nobody knows it, but me. I stare at your photograph still sleep in the shirt you left and nobody knows it, but me. Every day I wipe my tears away. So many nights I've prayed for you to say."_ Maddie sang softly.

" _I should've been chasing you. I should've been trying to prove that you were all that mattered to me. I should have said all the things that I kept inside of me and maybe I could've made you believe. That what we had was all we'd ever need."_ They sang in unison.

" _My friends think I'm movin' on, but the truth is I'm not that strong and nobody knows it, but me. And I've kept all the words you've said in a box underneath my bed and nobody knows it, but me. But if you're happy I'll get through somehow, but the truth is that I've been screamin' out."_ JC sang in a mellow tone.

" _I should've been chasing you. I should've been trying to prove that you were all that mattered to me. I should have said all the things that I kept inside of me and maybe I could have made you believe. That what we had was all we'd ever need."_

" _It's was all we'd ever need."_ He sang.

" _Oh, I thought it was all we'd ever need."_ She hit her lower register.

" _I should've been chasing you."_ He wailed.

" _You should have been trying to prove."_ Her voice answered.

" _That you were all that mattered to me."_ He came back.

" _You should have said all the things."_ She added.

" _That I kept inside of me."_ He stared into her eyes.

" _And maybe you could have made me believe."_ She stared back into his eyes.

" _That what we had, girl."_

" _Oh, that what we had."_

" _What we had."_

" _It was all we'd ever need. It was all we'd ever need."_ They finished softly their faces almost touching.

"You two attached to that one?" Rayna grinned at them.

"We aren't attached to it if you and Deacon want it." JC chuckled.

"Not so fast. They haven't paid us for the last song yet." Maddie smirked.

"Oh, relax the two of you are gonna get paid." Rayna rolled her eyes playfully.

As time went on a card game broke out between some of the people sitting in the waiting room.

"Jimmy, are you sure you wanna bet that much against me?" Rayna challenged him.

"I'm sure," JC retorted. "Now, let's see what you got."

"I've only got a pair." Rayna said sadly.

"I've got a flush I win." JC smirked.

"I only have a pair and three of a kind. If memory serves that's a full house and I win." Rayna told him smugly. She raked the chips in.

"That's bullshit. I don't know how, but somehow you cheat." JC threw his cards down playfully.

"Oh, honey, Deacon and your daddy taught me how to play poker. There's not much you can do to beat me." Rayna winked at him.

"Mrs. Claybourne," Caleb's voice came from the doorway and turned everyone's attention toward him away from the TV just as shot of Teddy being led off in cuffs played.

"Sweetie, he's talking to you not to me." June told Rayna.

"Yes?" Rayna asked.

"Can I have a word with you outside for a moment?" Caleb asked her a neutral expression on his face.

"Sure," Rayna somehow made her legs work to follow him.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know I left you with a bit of a cliffhanger, but the next chapter will be up soon. Until next time please review.


	37. Chapter 37

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 37

It felt like weights were holding down his eyelids. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't make them open. Couldn't escape the cold darkness that seemed to surround him. Somewhere on the edge of his awareness he felt a dull stab of pain. A sweet melody reached his ears though he couldn't say where it came from. He fought to open his to find the source of the music. A warm hand encompassed one of his and he knew almost instinctively who it belonged to he recognized the touch without seeing the face that went with it. He allowed himself to relax and to stop fighting the sleep that was trying to overtake him. He knew that he was safe.

When he finally opened his eyes he couldn't say how much time had passed. The only thing he knew for sure was he still felt the same hand enclosing his. It took a minute for his eyes to adjust and he could make out a mane of strawberry blonde hair next to him.

"Hi, baby, it's so good to see you with your eyes open. You've been trying so hard to wake up since they brought you out of surgery an hour ago. The antiesthetic hit you pretty hard, but everything went really well and you're gonna be just fine." Rayna threaded her fingers through his.

"I'm alive? I didn't die?" Deacon's voice was raspy from the tube they'd stuck down it during surgery.

"You're still alive you're still here, baby. You were more scared than you let on weren't you?" She bent down and kissed his lips softly. She needed something good to focus on right now with everything else going to hell around her.

"Was scared I was gonna leave you alone. Where my girls?" His eyes searched the room for Maddie and Daphne.

"Sugar, that was never gonna happen. They are still in the waiting room. I'll get them for you in just a minute. Everyone came by to wait while you were in surgery and they wanted me to tell you to get well soon." She brushed her thumb across his cheek. She was gonna try to avoid going too in depth about anything for as long as she could.

"Outlaw and Rebel?" He used his nicknames for Little Deacon and Jaymes.

"They are fine I will Facetime them for you once you're a little more alert." She promised him.

"Can I see the girls?" He asked hopefully.

"Of course you can, babe. Let me go get them for you." She kissed his forehead before she walked out. Once she was out of the room she took a deep breath and let her brave face slip. She just had to hold things together for a little while longer.

Daphne was curled into Tandy's side tearstains streaking her face. Maddie sat next to JC who had his arm around her.

"Girls, Deacon is asking for you. I know that you're both really upset right now, but I need you to be strong for him right now. He's confused and I will explain things to him later just the two of us." Rayna gestured for the girls to come over to her. "Can you do that for me?"

"Yeah, mom, I can do that." Maddie agreed.

Daphne nodded her head stoically.

"Scarlett, do you wanna come see your uncle? He specifically asked for his girls." Rayna asked her.

"I can't right now he will take one look at me and he will know somethin' is wrong. I can't lie to him because he always knows." Scarlett shook her head.

"It's ok, sweetie, I'll make an excuse for you. He can read me just as well as I can read him though." Rayna reassured her.

"Hi, girls," Deacon winced. He tried to sit up and his stitches pulled.

"Deacon John, you need to be careful you don't want to bust your sutures." Rayna scolded him.

"Aren't you girls gonna come give me some sugar?" He asked.

"I'm glad you're ok, dad." Maddie kissed his cheek.

Daphne kissed his other cheek. "Get well soon, Deacon."

"Mom, we are gonna go back to the waiting room ok?" Maddie said. She just couldn't pretend for her dad.

"Go on, he's fine. I'll let you know the minute anything changes." Rayna replied.

Maddie guided Daphne out of the room.

"Ray, what's goin' on with them? They both looked really sad." He had picked up on their dark mood.

"Honey, not now, ok? I will explain everything to you later, but right now I want to concentrate on making sure you're ok." She leaned over and rested her forehead against his. "I am so glad that you're ok. You're my rock and I need you now more than ever." She swallowed around a lump in her throat.

"Rayna, tell me what's wrong or I'm gonna get my sore, old ass up out of this bed and find out for myself." He put his foot down.

"There's a lot going on today. Not the least of which is Teddy got arrested I promise I will fill you in on the rest later when it's just the two of us." She told him as little as she had to for the moment.

"Somehow after hooker gate this doesn't surprise me at all." He sighed.

"Babe, please rest and I will be right back. I have to go check on the girls. I think I'm gonna send them home. I just want to know that they are safe and out of the public eye." She ran her hands through her hair.

"Ok, I'll get some rest. Come back when you can baby. I'll be here." He gave her the grin that she loved.

* * *

"Come here, you look like you could use another hug." JC pulled Maddie into a big hug when she walked back into the waiting room.

"Thanks, I don't know what I would do without you sometimes." She rested her head on his shoulder.

"You won't ever have to find out. I'm here for you any time that you need me and you know that." He rubbed her back.

"Maddie!" Colt exclaimed as he rushed into the room.

Maddie pulled out of JC's embrace a guilty look on her face. "Colt, you came."

Colt pulled her into his arms. He glared at JC over her shoulder. "Of course I came. I had my dad bring me as soon as I heard. I'm so sorry about your dad." He held on to her possessively.

"Maddie, I'm headin' to grab a soda. Do you want or need anythin' while I'm goin'?" JC asked her. He put his hand on her shoulder in comforting gesture.

"No, I'm good, thank you." Maddie shook her head.

"I've got it from here. You can go now." Colt told him.

"My godfather is layin' up in a hospital bed. All due respect, but I'm not goin' anywhere until I see him." JC was polite enough, but there was a hard undertone in his voice.

"JC, sweetie, can you bring Daphne something to drink?" Tandy stepped in to keep those two from coming to blows.

"Of course I can. Do you want anything?" JC asked her.

"Yeah, bring me something too please." Tandy smiled at him. She could see how bad he had it for her niece. Truthfully she preferred him to Colt, but that was something Maddie had to figure out for herself.

* * *

Luke stood off at the edge of the waiting room.

"Luke, what are you doing here?" Rayna walked back from Deacon's room.

"Colt heard about what's goin' on with Teddy and he wanted to come be here for Maddie." He explained.

"I'm actually glad you're here that saves me from having to track you down. You and I need to have a talk." She told him.

"I figured that was comin'." He winced.

"Come with me we aren't doing this publically." She grabbed his arm and dragged him off to a private room.

"Ok, lay it on me." He crossed his arms over his chest.

"First of all you and I have a contract regarding Will opening for you. You have no good reason for dropping him and you damn sure can't drop him just because he's gay. There are federal laws against that. Not only can I sue you for breach of contract he can sue you for discrimination." She blasted him right out of the gate.

"It's not personal it's just business. I doubt that my fan base is gonna be ok with a gay man openin' for me. I can't afford for ticket sales to take a hit because of it. I have a brand new label that I'm tryin' to get off the ground. You of all people can understand that." He reasoned with her.

"It sounds pretty damn personal if you ask me. The gay ain't gonna rub off on you, Luke." She arched her eyebrow at him. "You wanna talk about this being business. It's just gonna be business when I sue your ass for lost revenue. I have a label that I'm trying to keep afloat too."

"The label that would have crashed and burned months ago if you hadn't been with me. Everythin' that you have today you owe to me. When I got with you, you were mortgaged to the gills, had an album that you couldn't give away, and a career that was on the ropes. You got your six statues outta the deal turns out you didn't need my seven carats. Jeff has a point maybe I should demand a DNA test just to make sure that those boys aren't mine. Wouldn't be the first time you lied about the father of your child." He flared. He still held on to more than a little resentment over their broken engagement.

"If that's how you feel then I guess I really dodged a bullet by not marrying you. That would be about the worst mistake you ever made in your life. Those are Deacon's sons they look just like him you or anyone else who think he isn't their father is crazy. That's not what this is about though. As far as the whole Juliette thing goes she is my artist and she still has a legally binding contract with me. I'm not releasing her masters to you without a fight. I will take your ass to court and sue you for poaching my artists." She shot back.

Luke's expression softened a little bit. "Rayna, I had no idea you have to believe that. I'm sure that we can come to some sort of compromise without takin' this to court."

"Luke, I know that I hurt you and I never wanted to do that. It would have hurt more had I married you and then decided that I couldn't do it. I have news for you though you didn't make me and I'll be damned if I let you break me. I'm not gonna fuckin' let you drag my babies into this either. This whatever it is, is between me and you." Rayna glared daggers at him.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said what I just said. That was my pride talkin'. I really have always had a thing for you and I rushed things when I shouldn't have. Look, I'll have my people call your people and we can work somethin' out about payin' you for Will's broken contract. In the mean time I will send Juliette back home where she belongs and I will have the paperwork drawn up to add her to my tour if she's agreeable with that." He sighed. "I didn't even ask. How's Deacon?"

"Alright, I can live with that. My people will talk to your people." She agreed to that. "He's doing well just got out of surgery not that long ago. Luke, you should go. You being here right now is kinda inappropriate. You and Deacon don't like each other and this is a family matter."

"I'll just collect my boy and we will go. We are gonna have to learn to get along sooner or later though our kids are datin'.' He replied.

"I really wish you'd called first I would have saved you the trip up here. It's not all that appropriate for Colt to be here right now either. Like I said it's a family matter. I appreciate the sentiment, but it's not the time." She crossed her arms.

"You know how teenagers are they don't really care about what's appropriate. Like I said I'll have Jimmy call Bucky and arrange a meetin' before I head off on tour." He nodded at her and walked out of the room.

* * *

"You guys don't have to still stay around here you can go. I know that sitting around the hospital isn't the most fun thing in the entire world. Deacon is still really out of it. If you wanna come back and see him later when he's more alert I know that he would like that. I really appreciate ya'll coming and sitting with me today." Rayna told everyone that was still sitting around the waiting room.

"I'm gonna go, if you need anything at all you call me. You and Deacon have been so good to me. You give him my best and tell him that I will be back to see him when he's feeling better." Sadie hugged her.

"I will," Rayna smiled back at her.

"I should be gettin' over to Kevin's. Tell Deacon I'm glad he's doin' ok. I'll call him and see when he wants me to visit." Will told her.

"I will if you need anything let Bucky know and he will handle it. He's gonna be really proud of you." Rayna hugged him quickly.

"Babe, I think I'm gonna get the girls home and check on the boys. Daddy has been alone with them all day." Tandy offered. She was sure that her sister was going to want some time alone with her husband.

"Thanks, Tandy, that would be a really big help." Rayna turned to her mother-in-law. "June, did you want to get out of here and get some rest? There's really nothing more than you can do here."

"Yeah, I will come back first thing in the mornin'. I could use some snuggle time with those two little guys after the day I've had." June replied. "I'm just gonna go check in on Deacon John before I go. Tandy, are you ok with waitin'?"

"Of course. I wanna check in on him too before I leave. We can go do that now. Girls, come on, let's go tell Deacon goodnight." Tandy herded her nieces up.

"Scarlett, sweetie, what are you gonna do tonight?" Rayna was trying to get her ducks in a row.

"I'm gonna hang around for a little while and then I'm gonna head out and get some sleep." Scarlett answered her.

"Do you need food or anything? I can run out and get you something. Or if you wanna wait and see if Deacon feels up to eating something I can go then." Gunnar offered.

"Thank you, Gunnar, that is so sweet of you. If you don't mind I'm gonna wait and see if Deacon feels up to eating." Rayna smiled softly at him.

"That's no problem at all. Just let me know what you need." Gunnar smiled back.

Before Rayna could go back and check on Deacon again Avery showed up to talk to her.

"Avery, what are you doing here, honey?" Rayna asked him.

"I needed to talk to you really quick. Uh, Juliette is gonna take off on tour with Luke. We tried to get her help for her postpartum and she didn't react well to that. I just wanted to let you know that I'm taking Cadence and going back to Ohio. I know that I've been doing a lot of producing for you lately, but I just can't." Avery told her.

"I understand you have to do what you have to do. I really wish you would stay though. You still have that contract with me. I know that you have your daughter to think of, but I think that you can be a really great solo artist. You don't have to put your life on hold just because your wife is a train wreck. If it's Cadence you're worried about you're more than welcome to bring her to the office. You know the boys are there all the time. There is always someone there to keep an eye on them." She reasoned with him.

He got a thoughtful look on his face. "Can I think about it and get back to you?"

"Of course you can. That offer has no time table on it. It's open anytime you want it. All you have to do is let me know." She replied.

"How's Deacon doing?" He asked to be polite.

"He's doing well thank you for asking." She smiled at him.

"I should get going and let you get back to him. Thank you for being so understanding." He said.

* * *

Deacon sitting up in bed when Rayna finally got back to him.

"Hey, babe, how are you feeling?" She asked him.

"I'm ok, feel like I got hit by a truck, but I'm alive that's somethin' to be thankful for. I've got this little button here to make that better though." He showed her the button for his morphine drip.

"Do you think you feel like eating anything tonight?" She sat down beside the bed and took his hand.

"Baby, I'm really tired I don't feel like eatin' at all." He laced their fingers together. "Now, how 'bout you tell me what's goin' on?"

She slipped off her shoes and climbed in bed next to him careful not to hurt him. She laid her head on his shoulder. "Everything is such a mess right now, babe."

"What's wrong, baby?" He put his arm around her.

"Like I told you Teddy got arrested. Will came out today and Luke dropped him from his tour. And the icing on top of the cake is that Juliette tried to sign on Luke's label. I talked to him about it and it didn't go that well. I'm just trying to be strong for so many people right now and I feel like I'm failing." She took a ragged breath.

"You don't have to take that all on by yourself. I'm here, baby, I'm still here and I'm not goin' anywhere." He pressed a tender kiss to the top of her head.

That was all it took for her to dissolve into tears. She buried her face in his chest and cried.

"Shh, it's ok, baby. It's all gonna be ok. You go on and cry I've got ya." He spoke in a soothing tone and rubbed her back gently.

"I was so scared that I was gonna lose you today. I don't know what I would do without you." She cried.

"I'm sorry as hell that I'm laid up in this bed and can't be of more help to you right now. It's my turn I'm supposed to be takin' care of you right now. You shouldn't have to take care of me again." He apologized.

"Don't you dare apologize for being you. I wouldn't love you as much if you were any other way. You being ok is the only good thing that has happened today and I will take that over anything else." She kissed him hard.

"You feelin' a little better now that you got it all out?" He held her close while she snuggled into his side.

"I feel much better now." She buried her face in his neck and breathed in his scent.

"I am sorry that you're gonna have to take this all on by yourself. I can't even help with the boys right now. This is the longest I've ever been away from them and I miss them so badly." His heart ached because he missed his boys so badly.

"Honey, as soon as you get home I know that you will help with them. I know you miss them. I can fix that though. Let's call them." She wiped her face and made sure that the tears were gone before she pulled out her phone and Facetimed the boys.

"Mom?" Maddie questioned when she answered the phone.

Rayna moved the phone over so Deacon was in the frame too. "It's both of us. Are the boys up?"

"Hey, dad, you look really good. Yeah the boys are awake." Maddie replied.

"Can you put them on? I really wanna see them." He asked.

"Yeah, just give me a second." Maddie laid her phone down and arranged the boys so they would both fit in the frame. "Ok, here they are."

"Outlaw, Rebel, it's daddy." Deacon cooed at his sons. Little Deacon's face lit up with a grin when he heard his father's voice. Jaymes started cooing and looking around for him. "Daddy misses his boys so much. Look at you I think you've gotten bigger since this mornin'. I'm sorry I'm not there to sing night-night song for you tonight. I promise that I will see you as soon as I can and we will have a bottle together. Daddy's right here look." His eyes teared up from seeing them search for him.

"Can you can boys smile for daddy and make him feel better?" Rayna asked them.

"Daddy loves you so, so much and he's gonna see you really soon. You be good for momma and your sisters. Night-night, Deac, night-night, Jayme." He blew kisses at them. He had to look away so they didn't see him cry.

"Bye, boys, momma will see you later." Rayna hung up the phone. "Oh, baby, don't cry." She put her arms around his neck.

He buried his face in her hair. "I just missed so much with Maddie and I don't wanna miss a minute with them, but I'm stuck in here."

"Sweetie, you had to battle your demons and put them behind you once and for all. So they don't have to worry that their daddy is ever gonna fall off the wagon. I'll tell you what I'm gonna stay with you tonight." She stroked his hair gently.

"No, babe, you go home to the kids. They all need you more than I do tonight. I'm doin' good and I will be fine on my own." He argued with her.

"I don't feel right leaving you here all alone. I abandoned you once, Deacon, I don't ever want you to feel that way again." She argued back.

"I think there is a compromise to be made here." He suggested.

"Go on I'm listening." She replied.

"I was thinkin' if Jimmy is around he could stay with me tonight. You could call me on that Facetime thing before bedtime and then you can come back tomorrow. Baby, you're exhausted physically and emotionally. I want you to go home and get a good night's rest. That's what you can do to make me feel better right now." He told her.

"Alright, I can arrange that. I just wanna spend some time with you first." She agreed to his terms.

"I'm not gonna turn down that offer. It's the best offer I've had all day. You better watch out these nurses are just a little too attentive to me." He grinned teasingly.

"They are just shit out of luck, you're mine, Mr. Claybourne." She put her lips against his and smiled.

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Mrs. Claybourne." He kissed her.

* * *

Rayna left about an hour later after getting him settled in with JC for the night. She peeked into Daphne's room and found her sitting up on the edge of the bed.

"Hey, Squirt, how you doing?" She used Deacon's nickname for her.

"Ok, I guess." Daphne shrugged her shoulders.

"It's ok to not be ok too. It's ok to feel whatever you need to feel right now." Rayna sat down next to her.

"Why would they arrest dad? He's not a bad guy he's one of the good guys. This has to be a mistake." Daphne threw herself into her mother's arms.

"I don't know, baby. I guess there are just things that we don't know about going on right now. It's possible that sometimes good people do bad things. I don't know what's going on, but I will try to find something out for you. Ok?" Rayna rubbed her back. She didn't want to lie to her, but she wanted to sugarcoat things as much as she could.

"Ok, mom." Daphne agreed.

"You know I've got the big bed all to myself and I really don't like to sleep alone. If you don't mind your brothers waking up every couple hours to be fed you could keep me company tonight." Rayna made it sound like Daphne would be doing her a favor.

"Really?" Daphne asked excitedly.

"Really, go on in there and get settled. I'm gonna go talk to your sister and I will be right in." Rayna sent her on her way.

Maddie's door was shut when she went to check on her. She knocked on the door and opened it. Maddie sat up playing around on her guitar.

"How are you doing with everything?" She leaned against the doorframe.

"I'm fine. I was thinking though I want to change my last name to Claybourne." Maddie told her casually.

"Maddie, you can't take back the things you do in the heat of anger. That's something that you need to think long and hard about. Teddy loves you he has loved you since the moment he found out about you even though he knew that you most likely weren't his. You don't want to hurt his feelings. I just don't want you to do something that you're gonna regret later." Rayna was trying to be cautious here.

"So only the boys are allowed to have dad's name? He's my dad too. Teddy can love me all he wants to and I love him, but he is not my father dad is. It kinda sucks to be the only one of his kids without his name. He told me that it was my choice and if I ever decided I wanted to change my name I could." Maddie argued. She was hurt and pissed off at Teddy.

"If this is what you really want we can sit down and discuss it." Rayna nodded her head.

"God, mom. You don't care about anything that I want. If you did you would just let me do this without an argument and you wouldn't have sent Colt away earlier." Maddie pouted.

"Maddie, I'm having a day. I'm trying real hard to be strong for everyone right now. Can we please not do this right now? I'll say this much today was a family thing and it wasn't the time or place for Colt to be there given that your dad and Luke don't get along. I just came to see how you were doing and to say goodnight I'm going to bed now." Rayna's bottom lip trembled as she tried hard to keep her emotions under control.

She went back to her room. She got the boys both in their bassinets. She kissed them twice once for her and once for Deacon. Daphne laid in the middle of the bed waiting for her.

"Daphne, do you want to help me sing the boys to sleep?" Rayna wanted to help her feel good about herself.

"Sure, mom." Daphne agreed.

"Mom," Maddie called softly from the doorway. "I'm sorry, I'm just upset and mad and I shouldn't take it out on you."

"I know, sweetie. Come and help us sing your brothers to sleep. Let's Facetime daddy so he can help." Rayna gestured for her to come into the room. She picked up her phone and called Deacon.

"Look at all my girls." He smiled.

"Hi, Deacon," Daphne waved at him.

"Hey, dad." Maddie said.

"Babe, we called so you could help sing the boys to sleep." Rayna told him.

"I'd love to help." Deacon agreed.

A few minutes later the boys were sound asleep and Rayna was in bed laying in the middle of the girls.

"Baby, get some sleep. I love you. I'll see you in the mornin'." Deacon told her.

"I love you too, babe. See you in the morning." Rayna blew him a kiss and hung the phone up. She silently thanked God that he was drugged up and couldn't tell she was holding something back from him.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter, I hope you guys liked it. What could Rayna possibly be holding back from Deacon? And where is Beverly? Both good questions that have an answer coming up in the next couple of chapters. I always felt like Avery got the short end of the stick so I had Rayna throw him a bone. I'm redoing a couple things with the whole Juliette situation. No flashbacks this chapter, but there are a couple more coming up. Until next time please review.


	38. Chapter 38

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 38

Natchez, Mississippi 1992

"Baby, I'm sorry about all this. I know that this is our first real tour that has gotten any kind of exposure and now we have to take this detour and clean up the mess my family made." Deacon apologized as they laid in his old bedroom with Scarlett sleeping peacefully in between them. He hated bringing Rayna and Vince here, but they really had no other option and it was familiar to Scarlett. He wanted to do at least that much for her with as crazy as her life was about to get.

It had taken a couple of hours to clean up the trailer from the mess Paul had made of it when he beat June. And from the things the paramedics and police had left behind. Deacon and Vince had both hurriedly taken down the yellow crime scene tape and cleaned up the fingerprint powder before Scarlett could notice that anything was amiss.

"Deacon, don't worry about any of that it doesn't matter right now. Your momma is more important. I really wish that you would have told me all of this sooner. I could have helped you through it." Rayna laid her head on his chest.

"I'm embarrassed and ashamed. If it wasn't for Scarlett I wouldn't have brought you and Vince here. I hate this house I spent the worst years of my life here. In every corner of this house I have nightmare inducing memories of some horrible thing that my father did to me. I should have stayed. If I'd stayed he wouldn't have touched her. I was supposed to protect her and Bev. Now look at what a mess everything is." He broke down crying finally. He'd held it all in while they were at the hospital.

"You are one of the kindest sweetest men that I have ever met, Deacon. The fact that you went through what you went through and you're still that way tells me how strong you are. I don't ever want you to be ashamed or embarrassed around me. You can be whatever you need to be with me and I won't ever tell a soul. What's ours is ours, babe." She ran her fingers through his hair.

"What did I do right enough to deserve you?" He leaned over Scarlett to kiss her.

"You took me in when my daddy threw me out and you have been so supportive of me. How could I not love you?" She asked in reply.

"You put up with a lot of bullshit from me and from Vince. I know that we aren't easy to deal with when we are together. And now you're agreein' to take my niece in for who knows how long. You heard what Bev's doctor said they think she needs long term treatment. They don't know how long it is gonna take. We are on tour and it's gonna be hard with a little girl." He stressed.

"Vince gets on my damn nerves like no one else in this world, but he's also like the big brother I never had. I love the idiot even though I want to kill him. You two are my family, babe. No matter what you do I'm still gonna be there for you. Scarlett has no where else to go we will make it work. We aren't on tour for much longer if nothing else Buck can watch her while we are on stage. Look at it this way it'll be good practice for when we have one of our own." She grinned at him.

He gave her a dirty look. "Rayna, that's not funny after the scare we had last month. You're nineteen I'm twenty-two. We are both too young to be parents right now. I'd love to have kids with you one day, but I have no clue how to be a father or if I'd even be a good one. I didn't have a good role model growin' up. I had my pawpaw thank God, if not for him I probably wouldn't be able to play guitar the way that I do. He taught me everythin' I know."

"I'm sorry, you're right I shouldn't play with you like that. There's no doubt in my mind that you're gonna make an amazing daddy, babe. Look at how attached Scarlett is to you. She lights up every time you're around and she clings to you. You're a natural born father. When the time is right more than anything I want a little boy who looks exactly like you and has your cute little grin." She teased him.

"I love you so damn much and there is no way in hell I deserve you." He told her.

"I love you too and I'm the one who doesn't deserve you." She smiled at him.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Ray, you ready for this? Luke and Jimmy just showed up." Bucky's voice brought Rayna back to the present.

"As ready as I'm ever gonna be. It's your job to keep me from killing him. Lord knows I almost did yesterday. Self righteous son of a bitch." Rayna grumbled. She plastered her stage smile on her face.

Luke walked into the room with Jimmy and took a seat. "Alright, we prepared an agreement for you that we think will work to your satisfaction reagardin' this whole situation." He tossed a legal document down on her desk.

"What's this?" She picked it up and looked it over.

"It's a pretty straight forward contract to have Juliette come out on the road with us for this tour. It's basically the same contract that we had in place for Will. The only difference is because Juliette is a bigger name artist she gets a longer set and more money." Luke explained.

"What do you plan on doing about your broken contract with Will?" Bucky asked.

"We will buy out his contract and give you an additional ten million on top of that." Jimmy answered him.

"Does that sound like somethin' you would be interested in?" Luke directed his question at Rayna.

"Yeah, that sounds like something that we could work with. I think that concludes our business here. I'm sure you're in a hurry to get on the road and start your tour. I don't want to keep you any longer than that." She replied curtly. She didn't want to spend a moment longer with Luke than she had to.

"Alright, here's your check. And if you'll sign that I'll get Juliette to sign it." Luke laid a check down on her desk.

She took the check and signed the contract. "Pleasure doing business with you."

* * *

"What sounds more interesting to you the proposal I have for a potential vendor or the quarterly earnings report?" Tandy looked over at Deacon. She was sitting with him while Rayna took care of business with Luke.

"Which one will put me to sleep quicker?" Deacon asked in reply.

"The vendor proposal. It's pretty boring and you should be out within a couple of paragraphs." She chuckled.

"I'm sorry I don't mean to be so damn cranky with you. It's just my sister hasn't been by to see me after I did this for her. I ain't seen my niece since I woke up. And my wife is in a meetin'. I miss my boys somethin' terrible and I'm just in an all around shitty mood." He sighed.

"It's ok I don't take it personally. Rayna warned me that you can be crabby when you're sick." She smiled at him.

"Have you seen my boys today?" He asked her.

"I have and they were both in extremely good moods. They have quite the little personalities now. Jayme is such a people person. Your mom was singing to him and he was just cooing away at her. Deac was content to just have his bottle and then lay on the play mat with Elvis beside him." She reported.

"Sounds like my outlaw and my rebel." He grinned. "Do we know anythin' more 'bout Teddy?"

"God help my poor sister if they live up to those nicknames." She shook her head. "He's facing some pretty serious charges. Corruption, embezzling, solicitation of a prostitute, misusing city funds. The list goes on and on. He could spend over ten years in prison. It's just a mess."

"I don't know what he was thinkin'." He sighed loudly.

"Neither do I. I don't think they'll even let him out on bail because they are afraid he's a flight risk." She replied.

"I need to get my ass out of this hospital. My girls need me right now." Being confined to the hospital bed was killing him.

"Deacon, you aren't leaving this hospital until the doctor says you can." Rayna walked in the room just in time to hear that.

"Babe, I'm goin' crazy here." He groaned.

"How's he doing today, Tandy?" Rayna asked her sister.

"He's doing very well. That man is a walking fool. He's walked around the whole ward three times today. They say that most patients don't go that far that fast." Tandy smiled.

"That's what I like to hear. It means that he is going to get out of here that much sooner." Rayna went over and kissed his cheek.

"Now that your keeper is here I'm gonna get going. You keep doing what you need to be doing so you can get home sooner. I'll be back to read you that business proposal the next time Rayna needs a break." Tandy kissed his cheek and left.

"Ray, where's my sister? She hasn't been to see me. I know that we've had our differences, but this isn't like her. I haven't seen Scarlett either and I know that there is nothin' that could keep her away." His intense eyes bore into her soul.

"There are some things I haven't told you. I needed to wait for you to get stronger before I said anything." She bit her lip nervously.

"What's goin' on?" He asked.

"Beverly had another break down. Paul is in a coma and they don't know if he is gonna come out of it. He had a bad reaction to the anesthetic. They are hopeful once they flush all of it out of his system he will wake up, but right now they don't know. On the plus side his transplant went very well. Anyway when she found out about it she just kinda lost it and had to be committed." She told him.

"This is my fault. I should have done this sooner. The only reason I didn't was because I wanted to hold on to the mad." He went into his natural state of blaming himself.

"Don't do that to yourself, babe. Not everything that goes wrong is your fault. I can't do this self loathing thing with you right now. I have way too many other things on my plate right now. No one could have asked anything else out of you. You did your part and then some. It's gonna be ok, you have nothing to be sorry for." She kissed the top of his head to temper her words. He needed some tough love at the moment.

"I wanna see him, Ray, I need to see him. First I wanna see my sister though." He seemed to take what she said in stride.

"Ok, let me call a nurse to get you a wheelchair." She replied.

"No, I'll walk. Just get me some damn pants. I don't wanna show the whole fuckin' hospital my ass." He snapped.

"Alright, I'll help you." It wasn't worth it to argue with him once he got an idea in his head.

She helped Deacon get a pair of sweats and a t-shirt on. A nurse came and unhooked his IV so he could walk around freely without having to push the IV pole with him.

Beverly laid on the bed in a heavily sedated state her eyes were open and glassy. Scarlett sat in a chair with her knees pulled up to her chest.

"Hi, Uncle Deacon, you look so good." Scarlett got up and hugged him gently.

"Hey, sweetheart, how is she?" Deacon looked at his sister with sympathetic eyes.

"They have her drugged up right now, but physically she's ok. She just dropped her basket again." Scarlett was so used to dealing with her mother's instability that it didn't phase her anymore.

"They will just readjust her meds again and she'll be fine. It's the gettin' it balanced out that's the hard part." He nodded in understanding. "Can I have a minute alone with my sister please?"

"Sweetie, come on. Let's go get a cup of coffee and let those two have some time." Rayna put her arm around her shoulders and led her out of the room.

Deacon walked over to Beverly's bed and took her hand tentatively. "I'm here, Bev, I've always been here. I was never more than a phone call away if you needed me and you knew that. You knew I'd do anythin' for ya. What did he do to you? This is what I was worried 'bout when you said you let him back into your life. He always destroys you even if he's not tryin'." He bent down and kissed her forehead. He slid a chair up to the side of her bed and just sat there holding her hand. He stared off into space and his mind traveled back more than twenty years.

* * *

Jackson, Mississippi 1992

"Bev, can you hear me?" Deacon sat down in the chair that was next to her bed.

Beverly stared at him blankly like she was seeing right through him.

"That's ok you don't have to talk you just need to listen to me." He reached out and took her hand. "Momma, is gonna be ok. They are releasing her from the hospital today and we are taking her home. Scarlett is gonna come home with me until you get better. I promise you that I'm gonna take good care of her."

Beverly managed to squeeze his hand.

"I'm so sorry that I wasn't here, Bev. I should've been here to protect all three of you from him. This is my fault it's on me and I'm gonna spend the rest of my life makin' it up to ya'll. I should have never left." He apologized with tears in his eyes.

"Not your fault." She managed to get those three words out.

"Thank you for tryin' to make your baby brother feel better. We are gonna get you into the best program money can buy and we are gonna get you well. Until then you just focus on you and we will take care of Scarlett for as long as you need." He promised her. "I need to go now and get momma home, but you call me as soon as you can." He kissed her head and got up.

"Love you, baby brother." She half smiled.

"I love you too, Bev." He smiled back at her.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Deacon, babe, if you wanna see Paul too you need to come on before the nurses come track you down for making an escape." Rayna came back in with Scarlett and pulled him from his thoughts.

"Ok, just give me a minute to get up. This is the hard part." He slowly got to his feet. He kissed his fingers and touched them to Bev's forehead. "Love you, Bev." He turned to Scarlett. "If she needs anythin' let Ray or me know and we will take care of it."

"I will, I'm so glad you're ok. I'm sorry for not comin' to see you. I just couldn't lie to you. You always know when I'm lyin'." Scarlett told him.

"It's ok. You have nothin' to be sorry for. Come see me later. I need the company or they are gonna have me up here sedated when I lose my mind." He replied.

Paul was hooked up to an assortment of monitors and he had oxygen in his nose to help him breathe. The good news was he was breathing on his own without the help of a ventilator. His vitals were all great. It was one of those situations where he could wake up at any moment and be fine or it was possible that he would never wake up at all.

Deacon held on to the door frame for support. "It's funny I don't see a monster layin' there. I see a world weary, battered old man. He didn't seem so small or so frail when I was younger. He was like the boogie man. Or one of those stories that get told around a campfire designed to scare the shit out of little kids. Only difference was he was real and he made every day a nightmare. His face haunted me even in my wakin' moments." He mused thoughtfully.

"It's because you're a man now. Everything seems bigger and scarier when you're a kid. You realize now that you don't have to be afraid of him and he has no power over you anymore." Rayna told him.

"I don't think that's it. I mean even a couple of days ago I still dreaded hearin' the sound of his voice. I sometimes loathed lookin' in the mirror for fear that I would see him starin' back at me. I came incredibly close to bein' just like him. All I know is whatever feelings I was still hangin' onto aren't there anymore. Maybe I just finally accepted the things I can't change. Either that or I let go of the guilt. Either way I feel good I feel lighter. I just wish it hadn't taken me losin' you and more than half my liver to see that." The words he was saying didn't make sense even to him, but he knew his wife understood him perfectly.

"You never lost me, Deacon. Even when I chose another man over you I was still yours. I will always be yours. I promise you that." She replied.

"Wanna take me back to my room and take a nap with me?" He turned away from his father.

"That sounds like the best idea you've had in forever." She took his hand so he could lean on her if he needed to.

Deacon sat up in his bedside recliner watching TV. Rayna had to run out for a little while and he was on his own for the time being. He pushed away the remnants of his lunch. He just couldn't eat hospital food. The very thought of it made him want to puke. A frown marred his handsome face. He was bored out of his mind and he didn't even have his guitar to keep himself entertained.

"I have something for you that's gonna take that frown off your face." Rayna pushed the boys' stroller into the room.

His face lit up. "You brought me my dudes."

"They can only stay for a little while, daddy, but I thought you'd like to have bottle time with them. I can't do anything to get you home to them any quicker, but I can bring them to visit for short periods of time. They miss you just as much as you miss them. They were not happy that daddy wasn't there to give them their morning bottle." She handed them to him because he couldn't lift them.

"Hi, my boys. Daddy missed you so much. I'm gonna get out of here really soon and then we will get back to our routine." He kissed both of their heads and breathed in their scent.

"Want me to sit in here or go wait outside while you spend time with them?" She asked. She got their bottles out and handed them to him. It always amazed her that he could feed both of them at the same time so well. He took to being a father the way a duck took to water.

"You don't have to leave as a matter of fact I don't want you to leave." He started feeding them.

"Then I will stay right here while you feed them. Bucky is gonna come pick them up in about an hour. Do you want him to bring you anything?" She pulled out of her phone.

"No, I don't want anything. Maybe you and I can do something for dinner though." He replied.

"I just got a text from your daughter asking me to go to some huge concert with Colt tonight. What do you think?" She read the text that Maddie had just sent her.

"Well, I mean it would be good for her to get out of the house and be a normal kid given everythin' that is goin' on right now. I don't see what it would hurt." He offered his opinion.

"I'm gonna let her go. This thing with Teddy is really hard on her and maybe if she goes out with her friends and has some fun her mood will improve." She said after thinking it over.

"I think you're right. She needs to go be a kid. This is a lot for an adult to handle." He agreed with her.

* * *

JC had a set of speakers on a dolly he used it to put them on the back of a truck. He got off the truck and wiped the sweat from his brow using the back of his hand. That was it he was officially done with the job that he had been paid for and now he could either get out of there for the night or go watch the rest of the bands play.

"JC!" Maddie waved him over to where she and her group of friends stood.

"Hey, Maddie, I didn't know that you would be here tonight." JC eyed the red disposable cups that she and her friends held in their hands.

"It was a last minute thing. Luke got us all backstage passes." Maddie replied.

"How are you getting home tonight? I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that that's not water in those cups." JC asked her.

"Relax, Grayson, my dad arranged for us to have a limo. No one is driving." Colt clapped him on the back.

"I'm relaxed I was just askin'." JC shrugged his shoulders.

"We are headed to an after party in a little while. Colt knows one of the performers from where he DJs. They rented a space out to keep the fun going if you wanna come." Maddie told him.

"Yeah I heard about that. I think that some of the roadies and the sound techs are gonna head over. I may see you there. I gotta get goin' though I have to get a ride back to my truck." JC excused himself.

The space that had been rented out for the after party was an old warehouse. A band was playing and there was alcohol flowing in overabundance.

JC made the rounds with his co-workers, but he made it a point not to drink because he had to get himself home. "Hey, Cross Eyed Cricket, how you doin'?" He walked up to Maddie and her friends.

"JC, there you are. I've been looking all over for you. They won't believe me that Will Lexington is your best friend." Maddie slurred drunkenly. She threw her arms around his neck.

"Will is my best friend." JC confirmed for them with a chuckle. "Now, you behave yourself and I will be back to check on you later." He shook his head and walked away. The next time he walked over to the group he saw an older guy with a ponytail hassling Maddie.

"Hey, let go of my arm." Maddie tried to jerk her arm away.

JC didn't think he just reacted. "I believe the lady told you to let go of her." He prided the guy's fingers off Maddie's arms and pulled her to his side. He turned around and put himself between her and the other man. "Where's Colt?" It amazed him that he just walked off and left her like that.

"He went to get us more drinks." Maddie replied.

"Cause that's exactly what you need more to drink. Fuckin' teenage babies." JC grumbled under his breath.

Colt walked back up at that moment and handed Maddie another drink. "There you go."

"Hey, try stayin' with your girlfriend when she's this drunk there are bad guys out there." JC seethed.

"Don't worry about it. Like you said she's my girlfriend." Colt shot back.

The guy with the ponytail tapped JC on the shoulder. "What did you do that for? I was just talkin' to her."

"Well, she just didn't want to talk to you. Take a walk, pal. And keep your damn hands to yourself." JC spit back.

"What if I don't?" The guy tapped JC on the shoulder again.

JC pushed him back a little bit. Not enough to hurt him just enough to move him back. "It's not advisable." He could see in his eyes that he wasn't just going to walk away. "Cricket, hold my hat." He took his cowboy hat off and put it on Maddie's head.

This time when the guy tapped JC's shoulder he took a swing when he turned around to look at him.

JC saw the punch coming and ducked it. He rammed his shoulder into the other man's stomach and tackled him to the ground. The two commenced to rolling on the floor fighting.

* * *

"Hello," Rayna answered her phone sleepily. She sat straight up in bed as she listened to what her caller had to say. "Ok, I'll be right there." She hung up the phone.

Daphne stirred when Rayna moved.

"Shh, go back to sleep, baby girl. Momma has to go out real fast she will be right back." She rubbed her back to put her back to sleep.

She threw on a pair of jeans and one of Deacon's t-shirts. She pulled her hair up into a quick ponytail and grabbed her purse and her keys. This was like déjà vu for her. This was far from the first time she'd gotten a call like this and the subject of the call had even been in the same condition as the person she used to get these types of calls from.

Half an hour later she pulled up in front of the police station and walked in.

"Ms. Jaymes, what can I do for you tonight?" The officer sitting behind the desk asked her.

"It's Mrs. Claybourne tonight and I'm here to pick up my daughter, Maddie Conrad." Rayna replied with a tight smile.

"Of course, Mrs. Claybourne, just let me get the responding officer for you." The young man replied.

Luke came in a second later. "Rayna, I guess I shouldn't be all the surprised to see you here."

"And I shouldn't be surprised to see you either. These two do have a knack for gettin' in trouble together." She sighed.

"Mr. Wheeler, like I told Mrs. Claybourne the responding officer will be out to speak with you shortly." The officer told Luke.

A young female officer led Maddie and Colt out a moment later. "Mrs. Claybourne, Mr. Wheeler, we are goin' to release them into your custody with no charges filed and without anythin' goin' on their records."

"Thank you, so much." Rayna gushed.

"Colt, what the hell happened to you?" Luke asked when he saw his son's black eye.

Colt rubbed his forehead. "Don't ask, dad."

"Maddie, where did you get that hat you're wearing?" Rayna asked.

"I don't want to talk about it, mom." Maddie took JC's hat off.

"Colt, you're gonna tell me what went on or I'm gonna tell them to take your ass back to a holdin' cell." Luke demanded.

"Everything was fine and totally chill until Grayson decided that he was gonna be Mr. Macho I'm a Green Beret Guy and get into a fight for no reason. If it wasn't for that there would be no problem here." Colt rolled his eyes.

"That's not what happened. Colt walked away to get us a drink and this guy came up and grabbed my arm and just generally being a creep. JC walked up and saw it and he yanked the guy's arm away. The guy didn't like that so he took a swing at JC. Well JC got the better of him so some of his friends jumped in and it got out of control." Maddie explained.

"JC is here and you were just gonna let him sit in a cell all night after he did this to protect you?" Rayna was not happy with her daughter about that. She was pissed off anyway and that only added to it.

"No, I just hadn't gotten that far yet." Maddie replied.

"If this doesn't take me back in time about twenty years I don't know what does." Rayna grumbled under her breath before she turned to the desk officer. "I wanna post whatever bail needs to be posted for James Grayson."

"I'll have them bring him out to you." The officer replied.

JC walked out not long after with an officer that had sergeant's stripes on her uniform.

"Do I need pay his bail?" Rayna asked the woman.

"No, he's not bein' charged with anything and nothing is gonna go on his record. As far as I'm concerned there need to be more men in the world like him, Mrs. Claybourne. He was obviously defendin' your daughter from a very real threat. The man who he got into a fight with has a history of druggin' young women's drinks. I don't want him to get into any trouble with his commanding officer for bein' a good guy. Though I recommend that you take him to the hospital to be checked out. They worked him over pretty good." She told Rayna.

"Aunt Ray, I'm fine. You should see the other guys." JC tried his best to grin, but his lip was swollen to twice the normal size. He had a cut across the bridge of his nose and one over his eyebrow. His left eye was almost swollen shut. His knuckles were puffy and bloody. He walked stooped over holding onto his ribs.

"Come on we will talk about it on the way home." Rayna gestured for him to walk over to her.

"Thank you again for bein' so understandin' ma'am." JC thanked the officer he had walked out with.

"No, thank you, for bein' such a wonderful young man and thank you for your service. My husband is in the army as well. There's no sense gettin' you in any trouble." She replied with a smile.

"Colt, I told you to get Maddie out of there so ya'll wouldn't get in any trouble. I had it handled. Sorry 'bout your eye. I didn't mean for that to get so outta hand. I tried to get ahold of that guy 'fore he could get to you. I was a little slow." JC told the younger boy.

"It's no big deal. You did your best." Colt nodded at him.

Luke went to JC and shook his hand. "Thank you for defendin' my boy and makin' sure that he didn't get hurt. If you need anythin' at all you let me know. I owe you one."

"No problem at all, Mr. Wheeler." JC replied. He took his hat from Maddie and put it on his head with a wince. "Thanks, for holdin' my hat, Cricket."

"Come on, Jimmy, I'm takin' you to the hospital." Rayna put her hand on his shoulder.

"I'll be fine, it's nothin' some aspirin and a beer won't cure." JC shrugged off her concern.

"My God, you couldn't be more like Vince if you tried sometimes. Don't argue with me." Rayna shook her head at him.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. So, the plot thickens. I had to add a little something extra in there with Beverly and Deacon's dad to keep things interesting. It looks like Deacon has finally found the closure that he needed with his past. The triangle with JC, Maddie, and Colt is heating up. I promise that there is still some really great stuff in store for this story. Until next time please review.


	39. Chapter 39

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 39

"Boy, in this light you look so much like your daddy right now that it isn't funny." Rayna told JC as she sat in the ER with him waiting for the doctors to release him.

"How so?" JC asked. He had stiches above his eye and in his bottom lip.

"I sat in the ER with him and Deacon all the time. If it wasn't for them drinkin' too much it was for them gettin' into bar fights. He once did the same thing for me that you did for Maddie tonight. I can't thank you enough for that. She's so naïve about some things still even though she thinks she knows it all." She replied.

"I really didn't mean to cause any trouble tonight. I was only tryin' to protect Maddie. Colt walked off and left her again. I just saw that guy with his hand on her arm and I lost it. I gave him the chance to walk away, but then he took a swing at me so I beat his ass. That would have been the end of it, but he's little friends had to join in." He groused.

"You have nothing to apologize for and you are the last person in the world that I am mad at right now. I'm not even mad at my stupid teenager for being a stupid teenager I'm just glad she's ok. That's not the first time I've been called down to that police station, but I hope it's the last." She sighed.

"I can't be gettin' in trouble they will throw me out of the army on my ass. I tried so hard not to let him provoke me, but when he took a swing at me I really lost it." He ran his fingers through his hair and winced. He had a set of bruised ribs.

"You can't resist a damsel in distress. I don't think you can help yourself. You're a protector it's what you do. Deacon is the same way. You know I'm not letting you go home alone tonight right? You have a concussion. You need someone to watch over you and Scarlett is at Gunnar's." She told him.

"I figured that was gonna be the case. I just wish these damn doctors would hurry up. I wanna go get some sleep." He complained.

* * *

"Dad, I wish you would say something. Yell at me anything. Are you even breathing right now?" Maddie had sobered up considerably. Rayna had dropped her in Deacon's room and was going to let him deal with her. She just couldn't work up the right amount of anger because she was so relieved she was ok.

Deacon's face was red from anger and his eyes were wide. "Madison, it is not wise for you to open your mouth right now. It's not that I'm mad you went to a party. You're a teenager you're gonna do these things lord knows I did 'em. I want you to have fun without worryin' 'bout my demons comin' to haunt you. I'm furious that you ended up at the police station. What were you thinkin'?"

"Dad, it wasn't something that I did on purpose. This guy was just messing with me and JC stepped in. They ended up getting into a fight and the cops got called. That's not my fault." She tried to defend herself. She grabbed her head because it was spinning.

"This right here is why your momma and I aren't thrilled 'bout you datin' Colt. You don't make the best decisions when you're with him. I don't know if it's because you're tryin' to be cool or what. You went to a party that you knew you had no business bein' at. If it had been you on your own I don't think you would have behaved that way. You would have made a different choice. You shouldn't have to stoop down to his level to make him like you. He should like you for who you are and not force you into situations that make you uncomfortable. I know damn well that that ain't your type of crowd." He lectured.

"Dad, do you know how hard it is to find someone who likes me for me and not just for who my parents are? I don't have to worry about that with Colt. He gets it he understands what I go through. There aren't many other people that I'm gonna find that with. You and mom say all the time that relationships are about compromise that's what I did tonight. I didn't really wanna go with him to that concert or that party, but I did because it's what he wanted to do." She explained to him.

"There's compromise and then there is forcin' someone to do somethin' that they really don't wanna do. He ain't the only boy in this world that's gonna want you for you. I promise you that. You are a beautiful young woman and you are insanely talented. Any young man would be lucky to have someone like you. I know that things are hard right now and you are pissed off and confused and you wanna lash at anyone that you can. The thing is there is enough of a shit storm goin' on right now without you addin' to it, Maddie. I get where you're comin' from I understand it, but, baby girl, you've gotta behave. I will help you through this anyway I can, but you gotta be good." He tried to reason with her.

"I know I messed up and I'm sorry." She apologized.

"Come here," He sat on the edge of the bed and gestured for her to sit on his knee. He kissed the top of her head when she did. "Listen up you're always worried about what the press is gonna say. How would you feel if it got out that you were taken into the police station? I don't think that would feel very nice for you. I wanna protect you and keep you from ever bein' hurt like that. Even if it means I gotta protect from yourself. That's why I gotta ground ya. And I don't mean you're confined to the house ground ya. I'm groundin' ya from Colt. I think it would be for the best if you two didn't see so much of each other for awhile." He laid down the law.

"I guess that's fair. It could always be worse." She nodded her acceptance of that.

"You two are just way too invested in each other. I think you need to experience a little bit of life before you lock yourself down. Even your momma and I had had other partners before we got together. I don't wanna see you miss out on life because you're too absorbed in some boy. This is your first boyfriend you don't have to stick with him. You get to try on other pairs of shoes." He kissed the top of her head again.

"I understand that, dad." She replied.

"Good," He rubbed his forehead against hers. "Lord, child, what did you drink? I can smell it comin' off ya."

"I don't know it was fruity and it tasted good." She informed him with a giggle.

"That's the worst kind it just sneaks up on you." He chuckled.

"Daddy, I'm hungry." She looked at him barely able to focus.

"I bet you are. I'll have your momma get your somethin' when she comes to get you." He told her.

"Daddy, are you very mad that I drank?" She asked.

"Maddie, it's somethin' that you're gonna do and I accept that, but it doesn't mean I like it. Like I said want you to be a teenager and have fun without worryin' that you're gonna be an alcoholic. I just want you to be aware that it could happen. I want you to tell me 'bout it if you do drink. Every once in awhile it's alright, but if it starts happenin' every weekend we are gonna have a problem. Never under any circumstances are you to get in a car with someone who has been drinkin' and don't you try to drink and drive either. You call me no questions asked and I will come get you. I think it'd help you to get a better understandin' of what I go through if when I get out you come to an AA meetin' with me." He didn't want her to start keeping things from him so he took a middle of the road approach with her.

"You'd really want me to come to a meeting with you?" She asked.

"Yeah I think it's important for both of us that you come at least once." He replied.

"Look at you being an amazing daddy even from your hospital bed." Rayna smiled from the doorway.

"I'm doin' my best not sure how good I'm doin', but I'm tryin. How's Jimmy?" He asked.

"You're doing a damn good job from where I stand." She replied. "Bruised ribs, three stitches in his lip, five above his eye, and a concussion. I think that about covers it."

"That sounds about right to me." JC agreed.

"Boy, you look like you bit off more than you could chew. Reminds me of this one time Vince and I got into a bar fight." Deacon chuckled.

"You should see the other guys. Seriously, there were four of them and one of me and they got the worse end of the deal." JC replied.

"Jimmy, sometimes when you open your mouth I'm not so sure I'm not talking to Vince. I want you to take Maddie and go down to that taco truck that's parked on the corner. I'm sure she's starving and I need a minute alone with Deacon." Rayna shook her head.

JC looped his arm around Maddie's shoulder with a wince. "Come on, Cricket, let's go get you some food."

Maddie leaned into his side. "Thank you for being my knight in shining armor." She teased him.

"I can't think of a single thing I'd rather be." JC touched the tip of her nose with his finger and led her away.

"Cricket?" Deacon arched an eyebrow after they'd gone.

"Don't ask me I don't know either." Rayna groaned and sat down on the bed beside him. "I don't know what I'm gonna do with her, babe. With everything else that is going on she picks now to start acting out."

"Given that they don't make the best choices together I've grounded her from Colt for a little while. If there is anythin' that you want to add to that feel free, but that is a large part of the problem I think. She told me that she doesn't think that she can find anyone else that is just gonna like her for her and not because of who her parents are and Colt understands that." He let her in the conversation he'd had with their daughter.

"I think you handled it well and having her go to AA with you is a good idea. I can think of at least one boy that likes her for who she is, not that she can see that. She's talking about changing her last name to Claybourne. She's really upset with Teddy and I don't want it to be something she does out of anger. It really would hurt him and I think she would regret it. Plus, Daphne is having a hard enough time with this and I don't want her to feel like the odd man out if Maddie changes her name. I just don't think now is the right time." She laid her head on his shoulder.

He nodded his head and worked his bottom lip between his teeth. "I understand what you're sayin' 'bout Squirt bein' upset." He granted her point.

"She of course got dramatic and asked if the boys were the only ones allowed to have your name. It was Maddie being Maddie. I don't know how else to say it." She sighed.

"You didn't let me finish. I told her last year that if she wanted to take my name it was completely up to her all she had to do was say the word and we would make that happen. I ain't really worried 'bout her hurtin' Teddy. I don't wanna break a promise to her and you don't know how much it kills me that she doesn't have my name." He admitted.

"He gave your daughter a good life and you should be grateful to him for that." She admonished him.

"No I shouldn't, Ray. Yeah, he raised her and provided for her and loved her, but it wasn't because I chose not to be there. It was because you, him, and everyone else got together and decided that he was more entitled to be her daddy than I was. I am grateful that she's had a good life, however I ain't gonna thank him for stealin' her from me. I wasn't given a chance one way or the other, babe." He hated rehashing it, but he had to make his feelings known.

"You're right, I don't wanna argue with you. I should have worded that better. Can we just make sure that she really wants this before we get any court orders issued?" She sighed.

"Yeah, we can do that. All I want is for us to do this as a team. We show them a united front and we settle our differences behind closed doors." He agreed to that.

"I could think of a lot of things that I would like to do to you behind closed doors right now, but you just had surgery and aren't up for it." She planted a lingering kiss on his lips.

"I promise you that I will more than make up for it when I'm healed." He kissed her deeper.

* * *

One Month Later

Rayna walked up behind Deacon and wrapped her arms around his chest. "Have I told you lately what a big help you are and how much I missed you while you were in the hospital?"

"You've mentioned that a time or two. Oh, be easy with me I'm still a little sore." Deacon winced.

"Just let me mention it again. You are the most incredible husband and father. I wouldn't be able to do any of this without you. I didn't realize just how much of the domestic stuff that you took on until I had to start doing it all." She placed a kiss on the back of his neck.

"Mmm, you better watch yourself, girl. We're home alone and those boys are nappin'. I will bend you over this counter and not think twice 'bout it." His voice came out husky.

"As much as I like the sound of that we don't have the time right now. I have a meeting with Avery in about an hour to just get a rough idea of how we are going to market him and to see about getting him into the studio. I will take the boys with me because I know you wanna go and sit with Beverly for a little while at the treatment center. Then we are gonna talk to Maddie tonight she's had some time to think about changing her name. Believe me I will be taking you up on that offer of sex as soon as possible." She replied. "And one of us needs to meet with the contractor about the work on the house."

"I will take care of it, babe. You just go on and meet with Avery. That poor guy needs somethin' good in his life right now. I will tell the contractor again about the Taj Mahal of closets that you're wantin' in the maser bedroom." He turned around and pecked her lips.

"I love you and you are way too good to me sometimes. You better get going and please be careful." She mumbled against his lips.

"I'm always careful and I love you too." He picked his keys up and went out the side door. He had just gotten behind the wheel of the truck when his cell rang. He groaned when he saw that it was the girls' school calling. "This is Deacon," He answered politely. "I see, I see, well that doesn't sound like my girl at all. I'll be right there." He said after he listened to what his caller had to say.

Fifteen minutes later Deacon sat in the principal's office. "Mr. Claybourne, thank you for getting down here so quickly. This really is a serious matter." The principal told him.

"You said that Daphne got into a fight and she hit another girl." He stated a little confused. He would expect that more out of Maddie than Daphne.

"That's right and we have a strict zero tolerance policy when it comes to violence. I'm afraid that we are gonna have to suspend her for three days." She replied.

He nodded his head and pursed his lips. "Was this one of those girls that my wife and I were just in this office to talk to you about no less than three times because they are bullyin' Daphne?"

"Mr. Claybourne, that issue was looked into I assure you." The principal tried to placate him.

"Here's how I see it these girls have been harassin' my little girl over somethin' that she has no control over. We came to you and try to handle it through the proper channels, but nothin' was done about it. The minute that Daphne steps up and defends herself she's the one gettin' suspended. That hardly seems fair to me." He mused.

"We strive to provide a safe environment at this school and we simply can not tolerate violence of any type." She gave him the party line.

"Ok, in that case you should be suspendin' those other girls too then. Violence isn't just physical. It seems to be it's perfectly acceptable to you for these kids to mentally torment a little girl that is already goin' through hell, but it's not alright for her to defend herself. My wife and I pay a lot of money to send our girls to this school and we can just as easily send them somewhere else. On top of that I happen to know that my father-in-law makes very generous yearly contributions. I'd be alright with her servin' the suspension if anythin' were gonna happen to these other kids, but to me a fight is a two-way street she may have been the one to take a swing, but this other girl was the aggressor." He said firmly. He hated to throw Lamar's name around like that, but it was to help Daphne.

"I'll tell you what, Mr. Claybourne. I think it would be in everyone's best interests to just let Daphne off with a warning and send her back to class. I can also promise you that this bullying will be nipped in the bud. We do take that subject very seriously." She finally relented.

"I assure you that I wasn't just tryin' to get Daphne outta trouble. Her mother and I will talk to her about this. If there is nothin' else I need to get goin' I have an appointment to keep." He offered her his hand.

She shook it. "Mr. Claybourne, I know that Daphne is going to be just fine because she has you for a stepfather. Most parents wouldn't have even bothered to come in and meet with me they just would have accepted this. Way to go, dad, you're doing it right."

"Thank you, ma'am." He smiled.

"Thanks you for coming. I'm sure that this is the last place you want to be right now." Teddy sat in an isolation room dressed in an orange jumpsuit. In the month he'd been in prison he'd grown a beard.

"You need to get to the point of what you want quickly. I went back and forth 'bout even comin' today." Deacon stood across from him with his arms crossed.

"I have something that I need to talk to you about father to father and it had to be done in person." Teddy replied evenly.

"Now you're interested in bein' a good father? They miss you especially Daphne. I just came from school about her because she's bein' bullied so badly 'bout you bein' in here. She needs to see you, Teddy." Deacon shot back.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." Teddy slid a thick manila envelope across the table to him.

"What's this?" Deacon picked the envelope up.

"You owe me, Deacon, I took care of Maddie and loved her like my own when you couldn't. I need you to return the favor when it comes to Daphne. I can say a lot of things about you, but I can't say that you don't love her like she's your own." Teddy replied.

"Teddy, what are you askin' me?" Deacon was confused as he rifled through the papers.

"I'm asking you to be the father that they both deserve right now. The one that can be there when they need him. That's not me and it's not going to be for awhile. I'm asking you to give them both your name and protect them from the hurt that comes with mine. I'm asking you to make Daphne yours. I'm signing away my rights to them both, because that's what's best for them. I want to shield them from this as much as I can." Teddy explained to him.

"You can't run and bury your head in the sand, Teddy. You gotta face this you gotta face them. You're puttin' it on my shoulders for me to handle. I'll handle this I will, but you ain't gonna be able to hide from them forever." Deacon reasoned with him.

"I'm not doing this to hide from them or because I'm trying to run. I'm doing this because I love them enough to want them to be safe and happy." Teddy defended his actions.

"Then father to father our girls need to see you they need no they deserve the chance to say a proper goodbye to you. I think it would do all of you some good." Deacon made his feelings known.

"I'll think about it. I just don't want them to see me like this." Teddy sighed.

"Sometimes it ain't about what you want it's about what they need." Deacon said before he left.

* * *

One tear filled phone call from Juliette was all it had taken for Rayna to hop on a plane to check on her. She knew that Deacon had things under control at home while she went to deal with this. She walked backstage at the Staples Center looking for the younger woman.

"Rayna, what are you doin' here?" Luke looked surprise to see her.

"I'm here looking for my artist. I got a call from her earlier and I didn't like the way she sounded. I just want to make sure that she's ok." Rayna retorted.

"Hey now, as far as I know Juliette is doin' just fine." He assured her.

"Do you know if she has seen her husband or her baby since she left with you last month?' She asked him. She knew the answer to that question she wanted to see if he did.

"Again as far as I know she hasn't, but I'm sure she has been in contact with them." He shrugged.

"I know that the answer to that is no. The fact that you don't worries me a little. You don't take very good care of my artists when they are out on tour with you. If I were you I would be concerned with the fact that my opener seems to be on a downward spiral." She lectured him.

"I don't have to be concerned about it. It looks like that's what I have you around for. Juliette should be in her dressin' room if you wanna talk to her." He pointed her in the right direction.

Rayna knocked on the door to Juliette's dressing room. When she didn't get an answer right away she pushed it open. There were several young women laying around drinking and doing drugs from the looks of it. "Where's Juliette?" She didn't know if she was going to get a straight answer or not.

"Are you like Juliette's mom?" One of the young women asked her.

"Apparently I am." Rayna quipped. "Where is she?"

"She's in the bathroom." The woman replied.

Rayna knocked lightly on the door. "Juliette, sweetie, it's Rayna."

The door creaked open slowly. Juliette's eyes were bloodshot and red rimmed from crying. She was pale and gaunt like she hadn't been eating enough. "Thanks for comin'."

Rayna walked into the bathroom and shut the door behind them. "What's going on, honey?"

"I don't know. I feel so out of control. I miss Avery and I miss Cadence, but I don't think that he wants to hear from me. He hasn't tried to call me in a month. Maybe they are both better off without me. This way I can't let her down the way my momma always let me down." Juliette mused.

"That's not true, that's not true at all. You're not Jolene and you're not gonna turn into her because you know how badly she hurt you and you wouldn't do that to your baby girl. Avery misses you just as much as you miss him. He just doesn't know how to reach out to you or if you want him to." Rayna told her.

"I've already messed so much up I don't want to hurt them anymore than I already have." Juliette shrugged.

"You have to know that it's not your fault. Juliette you're sick and there is no shame in that. The shame comes in not getting help for it." Rayna sighed.

"I want to get better and I want to be there for them like I should. I just don't know how." Juliette broke down crying.

"Shh, it's ok. It's all gonna be ok. We are gonna get you some help. I've been waiting for this call and I have looked into some good doctors that are discreet and will do remote sessions with you." Rayna put her arm around the younger woman and rubbed her back.

"I'm a total bitch to you. I don't deserve to have you be so nice to me. I'm a mess right now." Juliette groaned.

"You gonna be able to go out on stage tonight or do you need to cancel?" Rayna asked her.

"I'm gonna have to go out there and hope that I can hold it together." Juliette replied.

"I have an idea just let me clear the room first." Rayna went back out into the dressing room and kicked everyone out.

"Rayna, what the hell is goin' on?" Luke came into the dressing room a few minutes later.

"Juliette is in no condition to do her set by herself tonight, so I'm gonna go on stage with her and take some of the heat off of her. Trust me, it's in everyone's best interests that I do this." Rayna was applying lipstick. She pointed with her eyes to Juliette.

"As long as you're gonna be here, how 'bout as a peace offerin' between the two of us we do Ball and Chain?" He tried to extend an olive branch to her.

"Yeah, we can do that. I think that's a nice gesture." She smiled at him in the mirror.

"Alright, I'll let the band know." He excused himself.

"What did you say to him? He couldn't have been nicer to you if he tried." Juliette asked her a smirk on her face.

"Let's just say I've had a few choice words for him lately and leave it at that." Rayna replied.

"You're about to have a few more choice words. On the list of really stupid things I've done lately I fired Glenn and Emily and I hired Jeff as my manager." Juliette admitted.

"I know, Glenn is working with Bucky in A and R and Emily is a miracle worker she got Deacon organized for when he comes back to work. She personally sat down and taught him how to do some things that he refused to do before." Rayna informed her.

"What am I gonna about this Jeff thing? He made me sign a pretty ironclad contract that basically gives him control over my whole life." Juliette asked.

"It's taken care of. You weren't of sound mind when you signed that contract and that's what's gonna get you out of it. Even Jeff isn't stupid enough or snaky enough to try to fight something like that. He knows that he would just lose." Rayna reassured her.

"You really are a full service label head aren't you?" Juliette gave her a half smile.

"I think it's more than that. Neither one of us will ever admit to it, but I'm pretty sure we're friends." Rayna winked at her with a chuckle.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you enjoyed it. I thought that the scene between Teddy and Deacon was needed to give that line a little closure. Teddy may or may not pop up again in the future I'm not sure yet. I'm taking the whole Juliette thing handling it a little differently. Until next time please review.


	40. Chapter 40

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 40

Deacon stood at the kitchen counter and stared off into space thoughtfully. He had been wiping down the same spot for a long time. He needed to do something with his hands other than punch a hole in the wall like he wanted to.

"Well, you look like you're about thirty-one different flavors of pissed off." Rayna commented when she walked in the kitchen door. She parroted the words that he'd said to her on the phone earlier.

"I'm down to only ten different types of pissed off. I've had some time to cool down since we talked earlier. I'm no longer as mad as I was." He clenched his jaw.

"Babe, I know that you hate Ball and Chain as much as I do and you never wanna hear that song again. I understand that, but this is a small town and you know that we are gonna have to deal with him for the rest of our careers. It's better if we can do that peacefully." She took her earrings out and put them in her pocket.

He laughed humorlessly. "The fact that you think I'm mad 'bout that song shows how far off base you are."

"If you're not mad about that song then what are you mad about?" She had no clue what he was pissed off about it wasn't like she was a mind reader.

He took a deep breath and grabbed a bottle of water out of the fridge. "I'll let you think 'bout that for a while and see if you can figure it out. We have more important things to discuss. The first thing is I got a call from the school today. Daphne got into a fight and she asked them to call me instead of you." He wanted her to really think about why he was mad. He wasn't trying to be difficult he wanted to see if she knew what she did wrong.

"What? I refuse to believe that that sweet girl got into a fight. She is not a violent person. If this were Maddie I would say ok maybe, but not Daphne. Why didn't you tell me sooner?" She wore a look of disbelief on her face.

"I didn't tell you sooner because I took care of it and I thought it would keep until you got home. The principal wanted to suspend her for three days and I said that unless she was gonna suspend those girls that have been bullying her then Daphne was stayin' put. Needless to say she sent Daphne back to class." He looked at her as he spoke.

"Babe, you are such an amazing daddy." She smiled at him. For the life of her she couldn't figure out why he was mad.

"The principal basically told me the same thing. After I left there I went to the prison and met with Teddy. He had his lawyer call me this mornin' while you were gettin' the girls off to school. Long story short he signed away his rights to the girls and he wants me to adopt Daphne and give them both my last name." He told her.

"I'm gonna throw a bunch of questions at you answer them in any order you want. Have you talked to Daphne? Why didn't you tell me Teddy's lawyer called? What do you think about that idea?" She asked him a series of questioned.

"I talked to her a little bit and I let her know that it wasn't ok to hit if she didn't need to, but it is ok to defend herself. I didn't tell you he called because he wanted to keep it between us until after we talked. I think that I want what is best for those girls and I think that one of the best things we can do for them right now is protect them from this so I'm alright with that idea." He answered all of the questions that she had asked.

Rayna crossed the room and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I don't know what I did to piss you off, but I can tell you that I'm so sorry. Because you are truly the most incredible man that I have ever met. You have stepped up in a way that I could have never imagined. You're not the man that I always wanted you to be or the man that I knew you could be you've surpassed that. You have exceeded my wildest expectations." She kissed him deeply and pulled on his lip.

Deacon pulled away no matter how much he liked the feel of her body against his and how badly he ached for her. "You can't just sorry and expect it to be alright if you don't know what you did wrong."

"Babe, you have to tell me because I can't think of a single thing. I did that stupid Ball and Chain with him and then to even it out and make sure that you were represented I did You and Tequila with him." She said and a light bulb went on in her head. "I sang our song with him."

"You sang our song with him. You sang the song that we wrote the night we made our boys with the man you almost married. We always said what's ours is ours and that one was a personal one. We wrote the majority of all naked in my bed all tangled up together." He sighed.

"You are so sexy when you're jealous. I promise you that you have nothin' to be jealous of. What's ours is ours, babe. Without you that song is just words to me. If the both of us aren't singing it that spark isn't there. I am sorry that I sang that song with him." She moved closer to him and pecked his lips again.

He fused his lips to hers and lifted her up on the counter a sure sign that he was done talking.

"Deacon," She giggled. "You are gonna bust your stitches and the girls are in the house."

"That is false. Scarlett made Jimmy go bunk up with Gunnar for the night. They are havin' a movie night in their pajamas. She said that they needed something to take their minds off everythin'." He attacked her lips with his again.

"God love that girl." She kissed him back passionately.

He groaned and rested his forehead against hers when his phone rang in his pocket. He groaned louder when he saw that it was the hospital. "This is Deacon," He answered the phone. He listened to what the caller had to say. "Ok, thanks for callin." He hung up without another word.

"Babe, what was that about?" She questioned him.

"That was the hospital. Paul woke up 'bout an hour ago. So far they don't see any signs of any mental deficits. That's good I guess." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Come here," She pulled him to her by the collar of his t-shirt and kissed his neck. "Look at it this way. At least you didn't give up over half your liver for nothing. Now he has to live with knowing that the amazing son he didn't give a damn about saved his life." She trailed kisses along his jawline and came back to his lips.

His nimble fingers started working the buttons of her shirt. His kissed in between the valley of her breasts and worked his way lower.

She titled her head back and moaned throatily. "Oh, Deacon, are you sure this is a good idea, babe? You're still healing and I don't want us to break anything important."

"Baby, all the doctors said when I feel up to it and I'm feelin' up to it right now." He took her hand and put it on the bulge in his jeans. He moaned when she squeezed lightly.

She grinned wickedly and bit her lip. "I can feel that. Now why don't you use that to show us both how much we've missed it?"

"You think you're gonna get off that easily with all the teasin' you've been doin', young lady?" He walked his fingers up her leg and up her skirt to the crotch of her panties. He let his fingers barely ghost over the fabric and he could feel they were already wet with anticipation. He slipped his fingers through the leg of her panties and located her clit. He rubbed in slow circles watching the look of exquisite torture on her face.

She grabbed him by his hair and pulled him down to kiss him moaning into his mouth. She gasped in surprise and pleasure when she felt one of his thick fingers penetrate her.

Deacon's free hand went to his belt. He unbuckled it and unzipped his pants. He worked his dick out of his boxers and was resting hard against her leg poised to enter her when both the boys' cries filtered over the baby monitor. "No, no, no, Deac, Jayme, don't do this to your daddy right now. Please, please, please, boys." The cries only got louder.

"Baby, you better go. No good was gonna come out of this anyway. You ain't healed enough for acrobatic sex up on the counter. I love the idea, babe, and it's gonna happen, but not tonight. Wash your hands before you bring them down." She sighed and made him take his hand out of her panties.

"I swear your son knows every time I'm 'bout to get lucky he starts cryin'. My son doesn't do that because he's an angel." He took a deep breath and tucked his member back into his pants.

"Deacon, those are hungry cries. I hate to break it to you, but Deacon Jr probably got hungry and woke his brother up when he started crying." She corrected him. She crossed and uncrossed her legs. She was still so aroused and she felt empty at the loss of his finger inside her.

"You're probably right." He agreed. He rubbed his beard against her neck. "Don't worry, babe, I'll finger you at bedtime at least one of us should get off tonight. I'd offer to go down on you, but I still can't lay on my stomach." He whispered in her ear sexily.

"Go get those boys," She giggled playfully.

* * *

"So, I was thinking that we could talk to the girls about the situation with Teddy in the morning when they get home from Scarlett's. It's something that's better to just get out of the way. We can also talk to Daphne about getting into fights at school. I wanna run something by you and see what you think of it." Rayna turned on her side in bed to face Deacon.

"What do you wanna run by me?" Deacon asked her.

"Teddy's right the girls will both be better off right now if they have your last name. This part should go without saying, but I want you to adopt Daphne if that's what you want. I'm sure that would make this easier on her. Daddy knows a judge that can push all of this through quickly without it making a splash in the press. My suggestion is that while we get that done we pull the girls out of school and either go on a family vacation or a mini tour. Then this summer we can go on that family tour like we talked about. How does that sound to you?" She laid out her idea for him.

"That sounds damn near perfect to me. I think it would be get to get 'em out of town for at least a few days too maybe even a week or two. And yes more than anythin' in this world I want to adopt Daphne so she will never again feel like I don't love her as much as our other kids. I want get that started as soon as possible. Teddy will always be their dad too, but right now I'm the only daddy they have that can be there for 'em." He agreed with her.

"Alright, I'll have daddy pull some strings then. It really should just be a formality. I'll also look into setting up that tour. Maybe a few small venues to start out with and save the big stuff for this summer. It'll depend on what Bucky can set up on short notice. You've been using the guys from my band and I'm going to need them back, so that means we've gotta look into getting you a band and backup singers." She rattled off.

"Baby, one thing at a time. Let's start with havin' that talk with the girls tomorrow. Everythin' else will sort itself out with some help from Bucky." He moved over in bed so he could hold in a way that allowed her to lay her head on his chest. "With everythin' else goin' on tonight I forgot to ask. How's Juliette doin'?"

"She's a train wreck right now, but she does want to get help. She is getting help. I got a therapist to sit down with her after the show tonight. Hopefully this gets her moving in the right direction. I showed up and she just had this group of what can only be described as leeches hanging out in her dressing room drinking and doing drugs from the looks of them. It was a mess, babe." She rubbed his chest.

"I'm just glad that she is finally gonna get help. Speakin' of your artists that are in need of help. I think Will has hidden out in Kevin's apartment for a month without so much as goin' outside. A chance to tour or just a swift kick in the ass would do him some good right now." He'd gotten that information from Gunnar.

"One of us needs to go over there and drag him out into the sunlight again. I know that I haven't seen him around the office for awhile I just didn't realize it had been that long. He's needs to get out and play a show or somethin'. Since I dealt with Juliette I will let you go deal with the cowboy." She bargained with him.

"Whoa, this is your label not mine, babe. You should go drag him out of his boyfriend's apartment." He teased her.

"But you're my talent scout, my artist mentor, and one of my best selling artists right now. It's your label too, babe. I couldn't do any of this without you. I want you to feel like this is ours and not just mine. I always dreamed of us doing something like this together once the touring was done and we were ready to be settled." She batted her eyelashes at him.

"Alright, I'll go talk to Will the first chance that I get." He relented.

"Thank you," She kissed his chest. "Did you get to see Bev today or talk to your momma at all?"

"I didn't get to see Bev, but I did talk to momma. She said that she's doin' a little bit better. The doctors just say it's gonna take time to get her regulated again." He replied.

"How's she likin' the apartment?" She asked.

"She said it's nice and it's close to the treatment center so she can spend a lot of time with Bev. I think she's wantin' to start lookin' at houses somewhere big enough that she can have all the grandkids stay with her over night." He told her.

"I know it would be really nice to have her here all the time. I think her and Aunt Dottie would get along great." She chuckled. "Baby, did you talk to the contractor today?"

"I did like I promised you I would and I emailed him the style that you wanted for your walk in closet. He said that he would take care of it." He assured her.

"Thank you, baby, you're too good to me sometimes." She buried her face in his neck. "Now, I think someone promised me something about his fingers. I'm dying here baby I need something so badly." She purred in his ear.

He slid his hand between his legs and let it rest on her panty covered mound. "A promise is a promise baby."

"I suppose I could always take care of myself. It wouldn't be the first time I did that while thinking about you." She told him seductively.

"Oh, baby, that just is not fair. I'm harder than a seventeen-year-old boy on prom night right now." He groaned.

Her hand found its way to his crotch. "You should know that I'm a very attentive lover and I wouldn't leave you hanging while you get me off. I plan on getting you off too." She squeezed gently eliciting a low moan from him.

* * *

"So, your momma and I have a couple things that we want to talk to you girls 'bout if that's ok with you." Deacon said the next morning as he stood at the stove making pancakes.

"What is it this time?" Maddie groaned. It seemed that every time her parents wanted to talk to them it was about something life altering.

"Of course it's ok." Daphne chimed in.

"Squirt, actually I mostly just want to talk to you. How would you like to officially be my daughter?" He asked her.

"What do you mean? How? I already have a dad." Daphne questioned him.

"Daddy and Deacon had a talk yesterday and he asked him to give you and Maddie his last name. He also asked him to take care of you and love you like you're his own." Rayna supplied helpfully.

"Your daddy will always be your daddy and no one will ever be able to take that from you. But he isn't gonna be around for awhile maybe a long time and he wanted you to have someone that you could count on. I'm not tryin' to replace him, but if there is room in your heart for me I'd like to be your daddy too. He protected Maddie and took care of her when I couldn't now it's my turn to do that for him. I would be honored if you would let me adopt you. To me there's no difference in how I feel 'bout you and Maddie and the boys." He flipped the pancakes he was making over.

"Does he not love me or want me anymore?" Daphne's eyes filled with tears.

"Daphne, of course he still loves you and wants you. That's why he asked Deacon to do this for him. He wants to know that you have someone else that will love you the way that he does. He can't be here with you right now and he's trusting Deacon to be someone that you can count on." Rayna explained to her.

"So what do you say, Squirt? Is that ok with you?" He asked.

"Can I think about it?" Daphne nibbled on her bottom lip.

"Of course you can think 'bout it. You take all the time you need." He assured her.

"So does this mean I can change my name?" Maddie asked.

"It does mean that." He smiled at her.

"Daphne, we need to talk about fighting at school. It's not ok to hit people." Rayna looked at her youngest daughter sternly.

"I'm sorry, mom, but they just wouldn't leave me alone. They say things about dad and about me and Maddie all the time. I tell on them and it doesn't help it just makes it worse. She called my dad a criminal that steals and sleeps with whores." Daphne explained.

"Oh, that is it. Deacon, handle the rest of this talk. I have a phone call that I need to go make. Maddie, help your daddy out with the boys and making breakfast." Rayna paused at smiled at the twins who sat on the counter in their bouncy seats. "You two just stay as cute and happy as you are, momma will be right back." She grabbed her cell phone and marched out of the room.

"Remember what I said, Squirt. Fightin' is bad and it's wrong, but sometimes you just gotta defend yourself and you ain't ever gonna get in trouble with me for that. Don't start anythin', but don't you let no one steamroll over you either." He plated the pancakes and put bacon in the frying pan.

Daphne nodded her head. "I remember."

"Those girls are just lucky that I wasn't there. If I would have heard them doing that stuff to Daphne it would not have been pretty." Maddie clenched her jaw. She hated the thought of anyone doing anything to her little sister.

Deacon left the bacon on the stove and walked around the island where the girls sat. "That's right ya'll are sisters and you're the best friends that either of you are ever gonna have. You gotta look out for each other and defend each other. And you gotta look out for your baby brothers and teach them to take up for each other. You're their big sisters and they look up to you so much."

"I won't ever let anyone do anything to hurt Deac or Jayme." Daphne swore.

"And you little misters gotta always look out for your big sisters and let daddy know when boys are messin' with them." He tickled their bellies and got giggles from both of them. At three months old they were starting to develop their own personalities that made it easier to tell them apart. "And what else did I say, Squirt?"

"If you have to hit someone and are gonna get in trouble for it anyway you might as well make it good. Put all your weight behind it and knock the smug smirk off their face." Daphne repeated what Deacon had taught her.

"Oh God, dad," Maddie laughed and shook her head.

"Well, it's true if you're gonna get in trouble for it anyway you might well knock the the hell out of 'em. It'll make them think twice 'bout messin' with you again." He tickled the boys' feet this time. "Say cause no one messes with us, but us. And if they do we deal with it." He had all four of the kids giggling now.

"What on earth is going on in here? What is he teaching you?" Rayna returned from the room to find them all laughing. "So, I went and called Teddy and he has agreed to see you girls one day next week."

"So many things that you don't wanna know about." Maddie replied. She ignored what her mother had said about Teddy she just didn't know how she felt about him at the moment. She was mad and she guessed a big part of it was because he'd hurt Daphne so badly.

"Deacon?" Daphne asked innocently. She was excited at the prospect of getting to see her father, but still she felt a sense of unease.

"Yeah, Squirt?" Deacon responded.

"He'll still be my daddy too right? Because if he stays my dad I would like for you to be my other daddy." Daphne told him.

"He'll still be your daddy too that's a promise." He pulled her into a huge hug. "Come here, Maddie," He pulled her into the hug as well.

Rayna watched them with a smile on her face and tears in her eyes. "What did daddy teach ya'll that you're giggling like little monkeys?"

Deacon huddled up with them around the babies and they whispered back and forth for a moment. "Nobody messes with us but us." they said in unison.

"Dear lord help me because no one else can." Rayna laughed and looked up at the ceiling as if in prayer.

"Come on, mom, Claybourne family hug." Daphne waved her mother over to the group.

Rayna walked over and allowed Deacon to slip his arm around her. "Did you tell them yet, daddy?"

"No, I was waitin' on you, momma." Deacon smiled.

"Tell us what?" Maddie asked excitedly.

"Well, we've been thinking that since you girls are having so many problems at school right now that we would just get your work and head out on a little family tour and then once school is out we will expand the tour. What do ya'll think of that?" Rayna asked. She knew just how excited they would be.

"Oh my God, mom, no way!" Maddie shrieked loudly.

"That is so awesome!" Daphne added.

"I think they like that idea, daddy." Rayna chuckled.

"I think they do too, momma. And I don't think Outlaw or Rebel give a damn either way." Deacon laughed.

"Deacon, you really gotta pick a nickname for those two and stick to it. Sometimes it's Outlaw and Rebel, sometimes it's the Peanuts, and sometimes Deac is Bubba." Rayna told him.

"They are little peanuts. They are the Outlaw and the Rebel, and Deac is always Bubba. If I say Bubba I mean him. You just gotta learn to keep up." He grinned at her.

"I don't know why I even bother ever saying anything to you. You have a comeback for everything." Rayna leaned her head against his shoulder.

"That I do, baby, that I do." He nodded his head. "You know I just gave these girls a big speech about how they gotta look out for each other and they are the best friends they are ever gonna have. It got to me to thinkin' that maybe it'd help my sister a whole lot if we all went to see her for just a little bit. I mean I know that you and her don't get along, but her and the kids love each other."

"If you can put up with my mean ass sister nearly every day and make an effort to get along with her then I can do the same. Especially given that fact that she's sick and she needs all the love and support we can give her right now." She touched his cheek gently.

"Babe, you have no idea how much that means to me." He went back over to the stove to make sure that his bacon didn't burn.

"Alright, after breakfast we are gonna go see Aunt Bev." Rayna announced.

"We can dress the boys in the outfits that she got 'em." Daphne suggested.

"That would be really nice." Rayna smiled at her.

"Maybe we can take our guitars and try to cheer her up a little that way." Maddie offered.

"She would really love that." Deacon agreed. He looked down when he heard Elvis whimpering at his feet. "Elvis, go lay down, boy. I'll fry your egg up in a minute." He shooed him away.

"Really? We cook food for the dog?" Rayna arched an eyebrow.

"I didn't start it, but I bet you can guess who did." Deacon replied.

"Your momma babies all of us entirely too much the dog included. I don't know what we are gonna do with that woman." Rayna didn't need to guess to know who had started cooking for the dog. June did a fine job of spoiling them all.

"She really does. She stood here one afternoon and made three dozen cupcakes for Daphne's class one day without breakin' a sweat. She has got us all so spoiled." Deacon agreed with her.

"Is mawmaw gonna be visiting Aunt Bev today too?" Maddie asked.

"Mawmaw stays right by Aunt Bev's side as much as she can so yeah she will be there." Deacon answered her.

"Maybe she will finally teach us that song she's been telling us about." Daphne said excitedly.

"I bet she can be talked into it. She used to make me and Aunt Bev sing that song all of the time." Deacon looked at her with nothing but love in his eyes. That was his little sunshine girl and he would do anything to keep that smile on her face.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. This was just sorta a fun light chapter for you for a change. Until next time please review.


	41. Chapter 41

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 41

"Come on in, Deacon. At this point I think that you're the only one that's going to be able to get through to him. He hasn't left this house in a month and I can't remember the last time that he showered. He did make it to the couch earlier, so that's progress. Tomorrow hopefully he gets out of his sweats and t-shirt. One day at a time though." Kevin ushered Deacon into the house.

"He acts like he has the plague or somethin'. Luke Wheeler is one jackass who doesn't speak for everyone else. Has he even talked to Gunnar or JC lately?" Deacon asked.

"He will talk to them on the phone, but he doesn't want them to stop by. I don't know what he's doing holed up in here. All Rayna has done is fight for him. I don't know what more he wants than that." Kevin led him down the hall and to the bedroom.

"I'm gonna try to do this like a civilized, mature adult. If Will chooses not to play things that way you may want to be anywhere, but here." Deacon informed him.

"I don't want to know so I'm not going to ask. If you can get him out of here and keep him from moping around the way he has been I'm not gonna say anything about how you choose to handle it." Kevin said with a resigned sigh.

"He took a risk for you and since you were the only thing he feels like he didn't lose he's holdin' onto you tighter than he should." Deacon laid some of his wisdom on him.

"Is this that man wisdom thing they say you have?" Kevin asked.

"Yeah I guess that's what it is." Deacon shrugged. He'd given up on getting them to stop referring to it as man wisdom. "Where is he?"

Kevin pointed to the bedroom. "He's in there and remember what I said about his lack of showering."

"Will! Come on get up day's a wastin'." Deacon called out cheerfully trying to get Will excited to leave the house. He stuck his head in the door and found the younger man laying on his back just staring up at the ceiling with a blank expression on his face.

"Ugh, really? You called Deacon on me?" Will's hair had grown out and he also had a full on mountain man beard now. "Deacon, thanks for stoppin' by, but you can go now."

"I didn't call Deacon on you, but clearly someone did. He's the closest thing that you have to a dad and you listen to him so it was a good idea. I'm going to work please remember to eat today." Kevin called back to him.

"I can't go now. Rayna sent me we'd both be in trouble if she had to come all the way over here and talk to you. We have that ACM pre-party that Highway Sixty-five is hostin' tonight and then we have the ACMs tomorrow night. You're on the hook for both parties and Rayna said to remind you that you still owe her a finished album. She also said to tell you that if you keep ignorin' her calls she is just gonna pick one of your finished songs to release as a single." Deacon retorted.

Will picked up a pillow and put it over his head in response.

"See what I've been dealing with?" Kevin rolled his eyes.

"I'll take care of this just point me in the direction of the kitchen. This might be a battle that you don't want to be here for." Deacon followed him into the kitchen. He grabbed a pitcher and filled it with water.

"I'm gonna head out and do some writing with an artist. Good luck with him. I think you're going to need it." Kevin offered him his hand.

Deacon shook his hand. "Lucky for all of us he can't out stubborn me." he filled another pitcher with water.

"I'll leave you to this and, Deacon, thank you." Kevin gathered up his stuff and left.

Deacon marched purposefully back to the bedroom. Will was now laying face down on the bed. "Up and at 'em, Sunshine. It's time to get a move on." He kicked the bed.

"Go away, Deacon. Let me fade into obscurity in peace." Will grumbled.

"Just remember I tried this the easy way." Deacon poured both pitchers of water on the younger man.

"What the fuck, Deacon?" Will shrieked from the cold water. He sat up like he had been shot.

"Get up, get a shower, and get dressed. At the very least you're comin' into the office today just to say you left the house. And you are gonna be at that party tonight if I have to drag your sorry ass kickin' and screamin'. Kevin says he doesn't know the last time you've taken a shower and honestly I can smell you." Deacon didn't give him any choice in the matter.

"Alright, I'm up, I'm up." Will grumbled as he got out of bed.

* * *

"In the studio with me today I have the lovely and talented Rayna Jaymes worldwide superstar and head of Highway Sixty-five. Or rather I'm broadcasting from Highway Sixty-five's headquarters. Rayna, thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this with me. You have a lot on your plate right now. Running this label, making new music, being a newly wed, and a momma to brand new twin boys." Watty spoke into the microphone that was on the table.

"Don't be ridiculous, Watty. You're doing me the favor by doing this here. I'm more than happy to set all that aside and come running to help you out. You're practically family to me. You helped get me started in this business and if it weren't for you I probably never would have met my husband. You even married us." Rayna chuckled.

"Rayna, why don't you tell the people out there listening why we're here today?" He turned the floor back over to her.

"Like I said it has been my pleasure to know Watty for a whole lotta years now. He's always had a knack for knowing a great artist when he hears one. He discovered me, Deacon, Luke Wheeler, and a whole bunch of other artists. Well more like he forced Deacon and I together because sadly guitar playing is not in my wheelhouse. He put the Exes on my radar when he heard them play at the Bluebird one night. So, when he heard my newest artist he told me that I could pay him back for officiating my wedding by letting him be the first one to play this single and get the first interview. I couldn't say no to that." She smiled at Watty.

"This is just one of that you hear them play you know it's gonna be a game changer. Ray, I'll let you do the honors." Watty winked at her.

"Allow me to introduce for the first time Highway Sixty-five's newest artist, Mr. JC Grayson." She smiled at JC who was sitting in a chair next to her.

"Hey ya'll, I'm JC Grayson and this is my new single Sinners Like Me." JC chimed in. The song started playing and the On Air light went out.

"Songbird, I'm just gonna ask him a few questions they will come get you when it's time for you to come back. I know that you have other things you're dealing with today. Just as long as you and Deacon give me the exclusive on being the first to play that new single of yours I'm not gonna argue." Watty winked at her.

"A promise is a promise, Wat, I'll be out there taking care of business if you need me for anything." She kissed his cheek and stepped out into the bullpen area of the office. "Deacon, I will be damned if I'm not startin' to think that you're a miracle worker. Look who you managed to get here." She went over to Will and hugged him.

"He didn't give me much of a choice he forced me out against my will. Pretty sure that he assaulted and kidnapped me now that I think about it." Will hugged her back.

"You picked a pretty good day to come back. Guess who is running his radio show out of our conference room this afternoon." She replied.

"I have no idea." Will shrugged his shoulders at a loss.

"Watty is in there right now interviewing Jimmy and playing his new single. I'm sure that he would be thrilled to squeeze you in last minute." She told him.

"I don't have anythin' ready." Will made a lame excuse.

"Pick a song to release it can be something off the old album or something off the new album. It doesn't matter to me as long as you get back up on the horse." She retorted.

"Broken Song or Spinning Revolver those are my two choices. Given that we are tryin' to rebrand you a little bit as an artist Broken Song will work the best for that it gives you some depth." Deacon gave his opinion.

"That's a really great idea. You wouldn't happen to have a digital copy of that song would you?" She asked.

"Let me go get my iPad it's on there. It's the final copy that Avery emailed me." Deacon headed for his office.

"I swear I think Emily fixed him a little too well when it comes to this technology stuff." Rayna shook her head.

"Emily?" Will questioned.

"Juliette being Juliette. Do I really need to say more than that?" She asked him.

"No you do not." Will just shook his head.

"Rayna, glad I caught you while you have a free minute. Bucky and I have decided that JC needs to get headshots done and he is extremely difficult to nail down. He needs headshots and he also shots for his album cover and things." Glenn approached them.

"I will take care of it. The girls need to have a photo shoot too. We can kill two birds with one stone. If Maddie is there JC will be there. The two of them are inseparable." She replied.

"Ok, that's all I have for you then. Everything is set up for tonight. You and Deacon will leave here after your live performance on Watty's show and have enough time to go home and get ready. You've already been through rehearsals for your ACM performance. There is nothing else that you two need to do other than show up." Glenn reported.

"Thanks, Glenn, you have been such a tremendous help since you came on." She smiled at him.

"Bucky and I work well together we always have it's nothing more than that. He's been on the phone all day getting you set up to go out on tour. Audition times have been set up for Deacon's band and backup singers. Also when you get a minute I want to talk to you about something we have in mind for Maddie and Daphne. For right now though if you aren't doing anything with this guy. I need to borrow him he needs to pick out the pictures he wants to use for his album cover." Glenn gave her a quick rundown.

"I'm gonna sneak him in to do a song for Watty and then he is all yours. I'm interested in hearing this idea you have for the girls so catch me tonight or have Bucky call whichever is easier on you guys." She replied.

"Will do, and that is a great idea." Glenn smiled at her.

"Babe, I gave his song to Watty's people. He said that he will fit him in after he's done with Jimmy and before we go on." Deacon came back.

"Hey, Deacon, thanks for pullin' my sorry ass outta bed. It feels good to be back." Will grinned at him.

"Anytime, Will, you're like one of my kids. I'm proud of you, you did a very brave thing." Deacon patted him on the back.

* * *

"Shoot me now, babe. I don't understand why we had to host a pre award show party." Deacon groaned. He twisted the lid off his water bottle and took a long drink. He wore a pair of jeans and a white shirt with shiny pearl snaps on it.

"Because it's good exposure for the label and with us goin' out on tour in a week we need all the help we can get. Plus, it shows that we are a real contender in the country music scene. And after the last month I think that we just need a reason to celebrate." Rayna replied. She wore jeans with a gauzy low cut blouse with rhinestones on it. Her hair was the picture of perfection as always.

"If you say so, darlin'. I'll just take your word for it. You know how I feel 'bout these types of things. I think I'll just go mingle unless you need me by your side to run interference. Then I think I'll call and check on the boys." He pecked her lips.

"We have a reporter that wants to talk to us together, but it would be nice if you went to mingle. You're the head of talent procurement and artist relations I want you to make yourself seen." She rubbed her nose against his quickly.

"I guess I can do that for you, but you are gonna owe me later, babe." He smirked at her.

"Darlin', I haven't had sex in as long as you have don't tease me I miss it. Don't try to extort sexual favors from me unless you plan on cashing them in." She groaned. At this point it was a toss up as to who was the hornier of the two.

"I haven't had sex either, that's why I suggest it every chance I get." He sighed.

"Will seems to be holding his own tonight doesn't he?" She quickly located him across the room where he was talking to Scarlett and Gunnar.

"He's gonna be ok. He just needed a jumpstart. Or you know two pitchers of water poured over his head to get him to see the light." He chuckled.

"It worked so I won't question it. I wonder what we have to do to get him to shave that beard." She mused.

"One thing at a time. I got him out of bed and out of the house. We can't expect miracles." He replied.

Lamar walked over to them lazily. "I'm glad that I caught you two alone. I got in touch with a family court judge that owes me a favor. You can expect things with the girls to just be pushed through the courts quickly. It shouldn't take more than a couple of weeks. It's in the girls' best interests to not be connected to Teddy so there won't be any problems." He reported.

"You work fast, daddy." Rayna commented. She wasn't sure that she wanted to know how he'd got things done that quickly.

"When it comes to my grandchildren yes I do." Lamar replied.

"Thanks for gettin' that done so fast, Lamar." Deacon said gratefully.

"Just don't make me regret trusting you with them." Lamar retorted. "I'll let you two go mingle." He walked away.

"I'm sorry about him, babe. I know that he can be hard to deal with." She apologized for her father.

"No, he has every right to be worried. If this were one of our girls in this position I would be the same way." He assured her.

She reached out and took his hand. "Come on, baby, let's go be social."

"Let's go," He agreed.

* * *

The red carpet at the ACM Awards was packed with photographers and reporters trying to get an exclusive.

"This is our first major country music event as a couple. Are you ready for this?" Rayna turned in the backseat of the limo and looked at Deacon. She wore a silver dress with a rhinestone covered bustier and a slit in the leg that went up to her hip. Her neck and writs were covered in diamond jewelry.

"I'm as ready as I'm ever gonna be, babe." Deacon straightened his tie. He'd been talked into a suit for the occasion.

A staffer knocked on the window of the limo and Deacon rolled it down. "Mr. Claybourne, Ms. Jaymes, we are ready for you now."

"Ok, we will be right out." He rolled up the window and grabbed her hand. "Here we go, baby."

"Let's go," She smiled at him.

Flashbulbs started going off the minute they stepped out of the limo. Reporters hurled so many questions at them that it was hard to tell where one began and the other ended. They stopped to be photographed and to answer questions.

"Rayna, you're still reaping the rewards of this last album what's next for you?" The reporter asked.

"Well, we have some really great stuff coming out from our young artists at Highway Sixty-five right now. I've been getting that all set up. You haven't heard the last of me by a longshot though. Especially if it's up to this guy standing next to me. He's one of the best songwriters in the business. I'm sure that we have another album or two left in us." Rayna answered with her usual poise and grace.

"Deacon, you have a few nominations tonight two of them in the same category as your wife with album of the year and song of the year. How do you feel about that?" The reporter turned to Deacon.

"It's an honor just to be nominated. It doesn't matter if she wins or if I win it's a win for both of us. Unless of course she uses it as a way to get out of diaper duty which I don't put past her at all. She gets creative to get out of changin' diapers. One time she used havin' to wash her hair as an excuse." Deacon was much better with the media than he liked to let on.

Rayna elbowed him playfully. "Deacon would use beating me as a way to get out of two AM feedings. He likes to fake sleep at that time of night and let me get up with the boys. He can play innocent all he wants to, but he's not."

"I plead the fifth on that one." Deacon laughed.

"About A Girl is currently lighting up the charts. Do you have any plans to go on tour?" Came the next question.

"I would say never count anythin' out, but time will tell with that one." Deacon flashed a smile at the reporter before leading Rayna inside.

"Deacon, who the hell are you and what have you done with my husband? You just handled that perfectly." She looked at him impressed.

"I still remember a thing or two from the old days of quizzing you and helping you prep for industry events. I'm not as dumb as I look." He winked at her.

"You don't look dumb at all. You're one of the smartest men that I know." She kissed his cheek careful not to rub her lipstick off.

"You're gonna mess your lips up. You wouldn't let me kiss you so don't be kissin' on me." He teased her. She would never let him kiss her once she put her lipstick on.

"I don't care about my damn lipstick I'll have to reapply before we go on stage anyway." She kissed his cheek again.

"Freakin' Deacon!" Luke called out loudly as walked up to the couple.

"Wheels Up," Deacon returned the greeting. He wasn't keen on talking to him, but he knew it would be better to just bury the hatchet.

"Hey, Luke," Rayna spoke to him cordially.

"Rayna, you should have let him off the leash you had him on sooner. Nominated for breakout artist of the year, single of the year, song of the year, and album of the year. That's not a bad haul. Though between bein' nominated in two of three of those categories with at least one of us he stands the best chance at breakout artist of the year." Luke tried to joke around.

"That's just by himself we are nominated for duet of the year too." Rayna's eyes shone with pride for her husband.

"You better be glad she had me on that leash or I would have given you a run for your money." Deacon cracked.

"Come on, babe, we need to go check in and let them know that we are here." Rayna urged him on. "It was nice talking to you, Luke."

"It was nice to see ya'll too." Luke smiled as they walked away.

Rayna and Deacon opened the show with Whiskey Lullaby the song was on fire on the charts and sure to net them another number one. After their performance they took their seats. They were seated in the front row mostly due to Rayna's star status.

"The nominees for duet of the year are. Ball and Chain Rayna Jaymes and Luke Wheeler, Things a Mama Don't Know Sadie Stone and Deacon Claybourne, and Whiskey Lullaby Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne." Carrie Underwood read off the list of nominees. "And the winner is Whiskey Lullaby Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne."

Deacon took Rayna's hand and led her up to the stage. They had both expected this so it hadn't come as a surprise.

"I think I speak for Deacon and myself when I say what an honor this is. When we started out in this business we never thought we would still be on top after so many years. That's because of our dedicated fans. It is ya'll who have made this possible." Rayna said.

"We have to thank our family and our phenomenal staff over at Highway Sixty-five. Bucky, Tandy, Glenn, Emily, ya'll pick up all the slack and allow us to get into the studio. We couldn't do it without you." Deacon picked up. They walked off the stage hand and hand.

Deacon and Rayna had gotten tapped to present the award for best new artist. He let her read off the names of the nominees and announced the winner. "And the winner for best new artist is Will Lexington."

Will walked up on stage and accepted the award from Rayna who kissed his cheek. "I'm so proud of you." She whispered in his ear.

Deacon clapped him on the back.

"First and foremost I wanna thank the fans. I wanna thank my amazin' friends Gunnar, Scarlett, Avery, JC, and Maddie for always havin' my back. To Rayna for givin' me this chance to begin with none of this would have been possible without her. And to Deacon for all his man wisdom and words to live by. Ya'll are just like another set of parents to me." Will made his speech. He flashed bull horns with his fingers and whooped. "Texas forever," It was a nod to JC.

Luke Bryan presented the award for single of the year. "The nominees for single of the year are This Time Rayna Jaymes, It's On Tonight Luke Wheeler, You Can't Stop Me Sadie Stone, and Just As I Am Deacon Claybourne." He opened the envelope. "And the winner is Just As I Am Deacon Claybourne."

Deacon stood and kissed Rayna before walking up on the stage to accept. "I have to thank God, my fans, and everyone at Highway Sixty-five. Scarlett, Maddie, Daphne, you three girls make me wanna be better than I am." He chuckled. "This is first time I get to do this. I want to thank my boys Deacon, Jayme, daddy loves you so much. I also have to thank my beautiful wife. Ray without you I wouldn't be standin' here right now. You loved me through my worst and you helped me build myself to the man I am now. You've always taken me just as I am. This is as much yours as it is mine." He took a deep breath. "To anyone out there strugglin' in the grip of addiction there's help out there you don't have to go through it alone."

"I love you so much and I am so proud of you." Rayna whispered to him when he reclaimed his seat beside her.

"I love you too, baby." He pressed a kiss to her cheek.

He didn't mind at all when Rayna beat him out for song of the year and album of the year he probably cheered the loudest for her out of everyone. Just like she cheered the loudest for him when he was named breakout artist of the year. It came as no surprise when she was named female vocalist of the year or entertainer of the year.

"Breakout artist of the year goes in the trophy case at Highway Sixty-five, single of the year goes in your office, and we are so putting the statues for duet of the year on our mantle at the new house." Rayna told him once they were back in the limo.

"I still can't believe that any of this is real, Ray. For my whole career I've been your guitar player and I was content to have things stay that way. I never thought that I could have any of this on my own. I'm amazed." Deacon replied.

"I've always thought more highly of you than you have of yourself. I knew that you could do this. If I'm being honest with you, you should have taken home album of the year. You're about the only person I wouldn't have had a problem losing to." It infuriated her when he didn't believe in himself as much as she believed in him.

"No, baby, that award went to the person it should have gone to." He gave her a lopsided grin.

"Deacon, About a Girl damn near swept the technical categories. You won for best mixing, best editing, best writing, and best production. That should tell you how good you are. You did all of those things yourself. That album is the standard that all future albums that come out of Highway Sixty-five will be held to. So, yeah, babe, I think you should have won album of the year." She leaned against him.

"Thank you for always believin' in me even when I don't believe in myself." He planted a lingering kiss on her lips.

"You still too sore?" She looked up at him with an arched eyebrow.

"I'm way too sore for the things I wanna do to you. I promise soon." He sighed deeply. This was torture on them both.

They stopped off for a late dinner before heading home. By the time they got there the kids were all sleeping.

"You know what? I think I have a better spot for those best duet statues than the mantle." Deacon took her hand and led her into the boys' nursery. He sat one on the bookshelf on Little Deacon's side of the room and the other on the bookshelf on Jaymes' side of the room. "What do you think?"

"I think that is an absolutely adorable idea." Rayna smiled at him.

"These two are the best duet that we've ever made together. Ain't nothin' ever gonna top them." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders content to just be with her and watch the boys sleep for the moment.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	42. Chapter 42

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 42

Deacon took a deep breath as he walked into his father's hospital room. This was his first time visiting him since he'd woken up and this was only to get him squared away before he went out on tour with Rayna and the girls.

Paul sat up on the side of his bed in a t-shirt and sweat pants. "I'm surprised you're here. If I'd had to bet I would have said Bev would be here."

"You broke her again, Paul. She's in a rehab facility gettin' her meds regulated again. I'm only here to get you into a similar facility while you recover. You're too well to be in here and too sick to be on your own." Deacon crossed his arms over his chest and

"I just got out of prison I don't wanna be locked down in some facility somewhere." Paul argued.

"I think that a ten thousand dollar a month center is hardly a prison." Deacon rolled his eyes. "Where's all your stuff?" He dug through the bag that held his father's personal belongings. "Do you have your wallet?"

"It's in my pocket. You could just check me into a motel I would survive." Paul grumbled and showed him his wallet.

"Do you have your Marlboros or do I need to stop at a gas station on the way and get you some?" Deacon gathered the stuff he'd accumulated while he was there and put it on a cart to push it out to the truck.

"They wouldn't bring me my damn cigarettes and let me go outside to smoke." Paul got himself into a wheelchair.

"Easy, you've been in that bed awhile I don't want you to bust you damn fool head and have to be in here any longer." Deacon took hold of his arm to help him.

"I'm fine I've got it." Paul pulled away.

"What the hell are you fightin' me for? I'm just tryin' to help you. I don't even wanna do that. I'm only doin' this because Bev asked me to get you settled. I can leave you here and let the facility come pick you up." Deacon arched his eyebrow at him.

"As long as you're here I might as well let you take me. Lord only knows the next time I'll get to see you." Paul stopped arguing with him and let him help him.

"I'm gonna go find your doctor and get your damn discharge papers. I have shit to do today that's more pressin' than dealin' with your mean ass." Deacon told him.

"Then get me out of here so you can do what you need to do." Paul bitched.

Dr. Rand came into the room and saved Deacon the trouble of having to track him down. "Deacon, it's good to see you. I heard that they were discharging Paul today and I brought his papers by."

"Yeah, he's gonna go over to a rehab center where he can recover more and learn to use his muscles again. They said that this place is really good and he shouldn't be in there long at all." Deacon replied.

"Well, here are his discharge papers if you'll just sign them he's free to go." Caleb handed the papers over.

Deacon quickly scrawled his signature across the bottom of the page. "There you are." He handed the papers back. "Come on, Paul, let's get you out of here." He put the cart in front of Paul for him to push while he pushed his wheelchair.

"Don't forget to stop for my cigarettes on the way. I need my damn Marlboros." Paul bitched as Deacon pushed him to the elevator.

"I ain't gonna forget to stop for your damn Marlboros. I may however let you get out of the truck with me and forget you at the gas station." Deacon retorted.

With the help of a nurse Deacon got Paul and his stuff in the truck out front of the hospital. He turned up the radio when he got behind the wheel to avoid conversation with his father. He stopped at the first gas station he saw and debated for a moment whether he wanted to take the keys out of the ignition or not.

"Paul, I'm leavin' the keys in the truck you damn well still better be here when I get back." He warned him.

"I ain't goin' anywhere. You're gettin' my cigarettes I ain't gonna leave without those." Paul snorted.

"I'll be right back. Do you want anythin' else other than cigarettes?" Deacon asked. He wanted to make sure he had everything that he wanted or needed so he didn't have to be bothered with him.

"I need some snickers. They wouldn't let me have my damn snickers bars either." Paul replied.

"Paul, you're a friggin' diabetic that's why they wouldn't give you your snickers bars. I'll see what I can do though." Deacon went into the gas station and returned a few minutes later with two cartons of Marlboro Reds and two cases of Snickers.

"Give those here." Paul reached for the items Deacon sat on the seat between them.

"You ain't gettin' those, old man. I'm gonna give them to someone in charge and have them ration them out to you. Otherwise it'll all be gone within a few days." Deacon put the boxes in the backseat.

"You'll tell them that those are my snickers and not to let anyone else have them right?" Paul questioned seriously.

"Yes, Paul, I'll make sure that they don't give your snickers to anyone else." Deacon rolled his eyes and pulled back out onto the road.

* * *

Rayna walked into an upscale vet's office that also doubled as a groomer. "Elvis, come on." She tugged on the hound's leash. He seemed reluctant to come inside. "I swear to God you're as bad as Deacon is I promise the rich won't rub off on you." She grumbled. He was used to going to the vet in East Nashville. Finally, Elvis complied and walked into the building.

"Hi, I'm Rayna Claybourne and I have an appointment for my dog Elvis to get some shots and be groomed." She spoke to the receptionist sitting behind the desk. She took off her sunglasses and hooked them on the front of her shirt.

"Just have a seat and the vet will be with you in a moment." The receptionist smiled at her.

She took a seat and Elvis laid down at her feet. Despite her love hate relationship with him he really was the best dog she'd ever seen. "You're gonna get your shots so you don't get sick while we are on tour and you're gonna get groomed so you look nice." She ran her hand over his head as she spoke to him.

"Elvis," The vet called out a few minutes later.

"Come on, boy," Rayna got the dog to his feet before she saw who the vet was. Standing there was Deacon's former girlfriend Stacey. She closed her eyes and groaned. That was just her luck.

"Rayna, hi," Stacey greeted her.

"Stacey," Rayna gave her a nod.

"This must be Elvis. He is a handsome boy." Stacey bent down to pet him.

"This is Elvis. He's a good boy. He needs some shots we are getting ready to take him out on tour with us and I just want to make sure that he's ok." Rayna explained.

"We can do that. I see he also has an appointment to be groomed. If you want you can just leave him here and pick him up later. I got his files from his last vet and he seems like a very healthy puppy. I don't anticipate an exam turning up anything bad he will be fine." Stacey replied.

"This is Deacon's baby I better stay with him while he gets his shots." Rayna replied.

"In that case follow me on back." Stacey gestured for her to follow behind her.

Rayna actually winced when Elvis whimpered from the pain of getting his shots. She grabbed ahold of his paw and rubbed it gently while he cried pitifully. She would never admit to anyone that she teared up because he was hurting. "It's ok, Elvis, you're ok, boy."

"All done, he took that like a champ. He is very healthy you can tell by his extra shiny coat." Stacey said once she had finished up.

"That's probably because my mother-in-law makes special food just for him." Rayna chuckled. She brushed her hair out of her face and when she did the light caught her engagement ring and made it sparkle.

"That will do it. He's obviously very well cared for. Ok, he's good to go over and get groomed now. You don't have to wait around someone will give you a call once he's done." Stacey looked down at his chart so she didn't have to look at the rock on Rayna's left hand.

"Ok, thanks, we will see you then." Rayna rubbed Elvis' belly before she left.

Two hours later Deacon showed up at the front desk. "I'm Deacon Claybourne and I'm here to pick up Elvis, my puppy. He's a blue tick hound." He told the receptionist.

"Just one minute, Mr. Claybourne, someone will bring him right out. Your wife dropped him off a couple of hours ago." She smiled at him.

He heard Elvis' bay before he saw him meaning the dog must have heard his voice. "Hey, Elvis, where you at, boy?"

"Here he is." Stacey walked him out on his leash. "Hi, Deacon, it's nice to see you."

"Stacey, uh, it's nice to see you too." Deacon took Elvis' leash from her. He bent down and petted the dog. "Look at how handsome you are. Deac is gonna be so excited to see his best buddy so clean." He scratched underneath the dog's chin.

"Rayna paid before she left, so he's all yours. I'm kinda surprised that you turned into a dog person all of a sudden." She commented.

"He was supposed to be my girls' dog, but then his upkeep fell to me. Truthfully though he's more my son's dog than anyone's. Him and Little Deacon just adore each other." He said just to make conversation.

"It's good to see you so happy. I guess I was just a placeholder." She shrugged her shoulders.

"That's not true what I felt for you it was real. I just ain't never gonna feel for another woman what I feel for her." He replied. "I gotta get goin' I got some more errands to take care of." He tugged gently on Elvis' leash. "Come on, boy, let's go."

* * *

"Stop, just stop, it doesn't sound right." Rayna yanked the monitors out of her ears in the middle of the song she was rehearsing. The band came to an awkward stop behind her.

"Ray, what's wrong?" Bucky pinched the bridge of his nose. It was rare for her to have a hissy fit, but when she did she made it count.

"I don't know this is just wrong this song isn't coming out right." She groaned. Truthfully she did know and it was petty and juvenile, but she couldn't help it.

"Babe, you're having a diva dip eat something so the rest of us don't have to suffer." Tandy begged her sister. She was just there to watch the boys for her while she rehearsed.

"I am not this is not some diva fit. I have a very good reason for voicing my concerns. Nothing sounds right when lead guitar is off. I can't be in a good mood and have everything in sync when my bandleader is off." Rayna huffed.

"Is the lead guitar off or does it just sound off to you?" Bucky sighed. The minute she mentioned the lead guitar being the problem he knew what the real problem was.

"Bucky, it's the same difference. When you've been singing these songs as long as I have you know that if you think the lead guitar is off it's off and it's not just a figment of your imagination." Rayna argued back with him.

Deacon walked in while Rayna and Bucky were going back and forth. "What are those two fightin' 'bout this time?" He asked Tandy.

"She said the lead guitar is off and he asked her if it was off or if it just sounded off to her." Tandy explained to him.

"Don't worry I've got this." Deacon walked up to the stage and picked up one of his guitars on the way. He started playing one of her older songs and the rest of the band followed him. He'd been her band leader for so long that he could play her songs better than he could play his own.

"Listen, Buck, that right there is what the lead guitar and the rest of the band are supposed to sound like. They are supposed to sound as seamless as they used to when Deacon was the band leader." Rayna said without turning around to look at the stage.

"Ray, you may want to turn around and look." Bucky pointed to the stage.

"Babe, when did you get here?" Rayna's whole demeanor softened when she saw her husband.

"I just got here. I heard that you were havin' problems with lead guitar soundin' off and I thought I'd show 'em how it's done." Deacon grinned at her. He put his guitar back on the stand. "Everybody take twenty and take the opportunity to go stretch your legs." He stepped back into his role of band leader seamlessly.

"Babe, we kick off our tour tonight I was doing a quick run through to make sure that everyone had it down before we go do sound check at the Ryman." Rayna complained.

"That wasn't 'bout your band leader, Ray. That was 'bout me. I know that you saw Stacey when you dropped Elvis off at the vet today. She said somethin' to me and I didn't realize how true it was until right now. She was nothin' more than a place holder for you, babe. There ain't no damn reason for you to jealous and take it out on your poor band leader." Deacon was the only person who could get away with calling her out on her bullshit like that.

"I'm not jealous of her, Deacon." She denied.

"You are so jealous and it is adorable, but there is no reason for you to be. You've got me baby. I'm the one wearin' your ring and that ain't never gonna change." He flashed her his wedding ring to prove his point.

"Seriously though, babe, my band leader was off. It's probably because I got used to playing with you again and you know what I want done without me even havin' to say it." She sighed.

"I'll tell you what. I'm willin' to go back to bein' your band leader for this short tour we're kickin' off tonight and then we will reevaluate for the big tour comin' up this summer." Deacon suggested.

"You are too good to me, babe. I can't ask you to do that. You're not just my band leader anymore you're a front man now." Rayna argued with him.

"Baby, don't argue with me. Your band needs a little more time to get their act together anyway. This way they can use this two-week tour for practice and be ready to go this summer." He reasoned with her.

"That does make a lot of sense and when you start talkin' sensible it's best that I listen." She smiled at him.

"I knew you had it in you to be a reasonable person and not some pampered diva." He joked.

She pressed her lips to his. "You are so not funny." She smiled against his lips. "Speakin' of the big tour. I have a pretty wild idea I want to pretty much bring the whole stable of Highway Sixty-five artists with us. We alternate who opens on what nights and we include them all in the show somehow."

"Whatever you want to do is fine with me." He replied.

"No, don't try that whatever you want bullshit with me, Deacon. This is your tour too. You're co headlining with me. I want to know what you really think and not just want you think I want to hear." She shook her head.

"I think that it's a good idea, babe. I mean we have Jimmy, Avery and Will. Then the girls, Layla, Sadie, and The Exes. Call it the Angels and Outlaws Tour or somethin' like that. We would just need to set our main openin' acts and alternate everyone else." He thought out loud.

"Babe, that is perfect. I think that The Exes should open for Will and then he should go on before Sadie. Then the other four acts we bring in as special musical guests or have them as the pre openers." She jumped on his thought train.

"Avery and Layla would go on one night and then Jimmy and the girls the next. We would just have to find a way to make it work." He added.

"I'll get Bucky on it. He will figure somethin' out." She replied.

"Alright, now let's release the band until sound check we need to go home and get stuff packed up and ready to go." He threw his arm around her shoulders.

* * *

Rayna and Deacon played to a sold out crowd at the Ryman that night. They would be playing venues like this for the next two weeks as sort of a warmup for their bigger tour and it was a way to get the girls out of town while they got things with their name changes and Daphne's adoption finalized. When they got back from this tour they would be taking a time out for their honeymoon before heading out on their other tour.

"I can't wait to get home and get out of these shoes." Rayna groaned once she got into the passenger seat of the truck.

"Just lookin' at those shoes hurts me I don't know how you stand in 'em." Deacon commented.

"Dad, a little pain is a small price to pay for shoes that look that good." Maddie chimed in from the backseat.

"You tell him, baby girl." Rayna turned around and winked at her.

"You've corrupted the girl, Ray. Way to go, baby." He laughed and rolled his eyes.

"You don't own anything that isn't denim or flannel. I don't think you can give us fashion advice." Daphne giggled.

"Always someone has somethin' to say about my denim and flannel. It's not like that's all I wear. I have t-shirts and sweatpants too." He defended himself. He could already tell that he was gonna have fun trapped on a tour bus with them for two weeks.

"Babe, you're not helping your case any. I think you should stop talking while you're ahead." Rayna shook her head at him.

"Ya'll keep it up and the boys, the dog, and I are gonna ride on the bus with the band." He threatened playfully.

"You're not hurting our feelings we can leave our makeup all over and watch chick flicks." Maddie shrugged her shoulders and laughed.

"Maddie, oh, baby girl, you don't know the can of worms you just opened." Rayna groaned and laughed at the same time.

"What? What did I say?" Maddie asked innocently.

"Until you've been trapped on a bus with your momma for a year and had to deal with her makeup all over every flat surface available you won't know the hell that I went through tryin' to find a place for my stuff. Then she has the audacity to say somethin' cause I left my boots out." He grumbled.

"You didn't just leave your boots out you would leave them right in the middle of the floor where I could trip on them. You still are pretty bad about that." Rayna arched her eyebrow at him.

"You wanna start somethin' ok. Let's start this. I have no room to put anythin' in our bathroom because all your creams and makeup and whatever the hell else it is haven't just confined to your vanity they are all over the place. There was a tube of anti-wrinkle cream where the toothpaste should be. Have you ever brushed your teeth with that? Not a fun experience, baby." He gestured his hand wildly, but his tone was light.

"How do you two survive on a bus together?" Daphne asked them.

"Well, it's been a very long time since we've been on a tour bus together as a couple. We once didn't speak for four tour stops except for on stage because we had a huge fight over him leavin' his clothes all over the place." Rayna informed her.

"It wasn't all bad though. We had some really great times out on the road." Deacon added.

"Yeah, we did have some amazing times out on the road." Rayna agreed with him. Her thoughts went back in time for a moment.

* * *

Atlanta, Georgia 1992

Soft snores came from Deacon as he slept. A sure sign he'd gone to bed sober if he had been drunk he would be snoring loudly. His arm was thrown around Rayna protectively.

Rayna was sleeping peacefully beside him. Her eyes popped open when she felt a heavy weight sitting on her chest. "Good morning, Bug." She smiled at Scarlett.

Scarlett smiled shyly and hid her face behind her little hands.

"Let's get your diaper changed and then we can wake Uncle Deac up and talk about stopping for breakfast." She lifted her up in the air and kissed her cheek. She grabbed a diaper off of the table beside the bed and changed her without getting up. "All done, now get Uncle Deac up." She laid her on top of Deacon's chest.

Scarlett and Rayna both attacked Deacon's face with kisses.

Deacon laid there and pretended to still be asleep, but a slight grin played on his lips.

"Wake up, Uncle Deac." Scarlett whispered in his ear.

Deacon barely cracked his cracked his eyelid. "Almost there have Aunt Ray try."

Rayna leaned over and kissed his lips. "How's that?"

"That's much better now I just need some more sugar from my bug." He pulled Scarlett towards him and rubbed his nose against hers. He ran his hand up and down Rayna's back. "I love my two girls so much."

"Love you, Uncle Deac." Scarlett kissed the tip of his nose.

Rayna straddled his hips. "I love you too, babe." She looked down at him lustfully. She knew that it wasn't the best timing with Scarlett in the room with them or given the fact that there were other people on the bus, but she couldn't help it. Something about Deacon had set her on fire since the moment she'd met him and it always would.

"Bug, go wake Uncle Vinny up and have him ask the bus driver how far we are from Atlanta." He recognized the look in Rayna's eyes and he was sure the same one was present in his own. He put Scarlett down on her feet and sent her off to wake Vince. That would keep her busy for at least twenty minutes. Vince was a heavy sleeper and it took an act of God to wake him most of the time.

Rayna put her hands on his face and kissed him repeatedly. "Oh, darlin', you have been so amazing lately. You haven't hardly been drinking since we've had Scarlett and you are just so damn cute with her." It was true Deacon's drinking was almost non existent lately. He was in a better mood and he was more fun to be around when he wasn't constantly sleeping off a hangover.

He ran his hands under her sleep shirt and grinned up at her. "Baby, we have twenty minutes while the bug is messin' with her Uncle Vinny to get some me and you time in. You best stop talkin' so much if you want that to happen." He felt like it had been months since they'd done anything more than hold hands. In reality it had only been a couple of weeks, but still they had a very active sex life and this was something of a miracle for them to have gone this long without it.

"I ain't gonna argue with that." She pulled the shirt over her head and laid down on top of him.

"I ain't gonna argue either." He slipped his hands in the waistband of her panties and it was on.

Exactly twenty minutes later Vince opened the bedroom door with Scarlett in his arms. "You two oughta be ashamed of your damn selves. Carryin' on somethin' awful while you send this sweet little bug to me to be watched." He smirked at them.

"Shut the hell up, Vince. It ain't like you wouldn't have done it in a New York minute given the chance." Rayna flipped him off in a way that Scarlett couldn't see what she was doing.

"Let's not fight now children. And, Vince, you're only jealous because you ain't got any recently." Deacon teased them. "What did the bus driver say?"

"We are ten miles outside of Atlanta if you two wanna get up and get dressed. We will be stopping for breakfast soon." Vince kissed Scarlett's cheek. "Bug, tell Aunt Ray and Uncle Deac that the two of them need Jesus."

"Vince, get her out of here so we can get dressed. I'm really gonna need Jesus if you keep up with me because one of these days I'm gonna kill you." Rayna rolled her eyes at him. "Bug, take Uncle Vinny back to his bunk and watch him. He needs all the supervision he can get."

"Really, ya'll get gone." Deacon laughed.

"We will see you two in a minute, don't be too long some of us are starving." Vince shut bedroom door behind them shaking his head on the way out.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	43. Chapter 43

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 43

"JC, can I steal a minute with you really fast?" Maddie walked over to where JC stood his guitar hanging around his neck from the strap.

"Of course you can." JC gave her an easy smile.

"I was thinking with this being a smaller venue tonight that we could do Don't You Wanna Stay the way we wrote it as an acoustic song." She suggested to him.

"Sure we can give it a try during sound check and if it sounds right that's how we will play it tonight." He agreed with her.

"Great," She smiled at him.

"I'm glad that we caught the two of you before sound check. We have somethin' that we wanna talk to you 'bout." Deacon and Rayna walked up on the stage each of them held one of the twins.

"We were hoping that during our portion of the show you two would come out and sing The End of the day." Rayna told them.

"Really? Mom, that would be so great." Maddie grinned.

"I'll be out there anyway backin' Deacon up. I'd be honored." JC chimed in.

"I was kinda hoping that you would sing Saving Amy tonight. I mean I understand completely if you don't think you can, but that song just shows off your range." Rayna added.

"Yeah, I can do that." JC answered a little unsure of himself.

"I'll be at the side of the stage. Focus on me to get through it if you need to." Maddie took his hand and squeezed it.

"Thanks, Maddie," JC rewarded her with a flash of his white teeth.

"Jimmy, make sure that the band has Walk Like a Man down cold. I'm gonna play it tonight and I want it to be perfect." Deacon told him.

"I've got you covered." JC assured him.

"That's all we've got for the two of you right now then. You're free until sound check if you want to do a little exploring. Just be careful." Rayna smiled at them.

"JC, wanna come take a walk with me?" Maddie asked him hopefully.

"Have I ever turned you down yet?" JC winked at her. He put his guitar on a stand.

"No you haven't." She held out her hand for him to take.

"Let's go see what kind of trouble you can get me into." He took her hand and they walked off.

"I don't get you into trouble you have that the other way around. If I hadn't saved you just the other night you would have gotten beat up by two hipster cowboys." She elbowed him playfully.

Daphne looked at the retreating teens and then turned to her parents. "So, does Maddie like have two boyfriends or what? She's dating Colt, but she's always with JC. It makes my head hurt."

Deacon laughed and put his arm around her shoulders. "Squirt, I don't think Maddie knows the answer to that question sometimes."

Rayna gave him a look and then rolled her eyes at him. "Daphne, it's possible for boys and girls to be friends without anything else goin' on. Deacon was my best friend all the years I was married to Teddy."

"Bad example, baby. Maybe you just stop talkin' while you're ahead." Deacon winked at her.

Rayna bit her lip and her eyes clouded over with lust. A brush fire was bound to break out between the two of them at any moment. All it would take was one spark and they would burn each other down. "The point is boys and girls are capable of being friends and not being together. However, I don't think that's the case between Maddie and JC."

" _Soon"_ He mouthed to her. He could feel her need for him almost as badly as he felt his own. "Let's go call Scarlett and see where she is with mawmaw and Aunt Bev." He suggested to Daphne to get her on another subject.

"No need to call and look for us here we are." Beverly squealed. She was looking a lot better. The treatment center had gotten her meds regulated again and gotten her into intensive therapy. She no longer had to be confined to the facility and she could come and go as she pleased now.

"Beverly, look at you. You look so good." Deacon hugged his sister.

"Hey, baby brother," Beverly hugged him tight. "And this has to be Jayme." She took Jaymes out of his arms. "Come see Aunt Bev, sweet boy."

"June, how was your trip over?" Rayna asked her mother-in-law.

"It was good, long, but good." June smiled. "I'm gonna have to steal my boy from you I've missed him so much this week." She took Little Deacon and kissed him all over his face.

"Where's Gunnar?" Deacon asked when he didn't see the younger man around anywhere.

"I'm pretty sure he's out in the parkin' lot takin' a few deep breaths. He should probably be made a saint after spendin' that much time in a car with the three of us. No man should have to endure that for a woman until he's put a ring on her finger. I think I'll keep him." Scarlett chuckled.

"I don't think you have a choice. June has already started planning your wedding. And quite frankly so have I. Anyone that can put up with all of us and not run for the hills deserves a medal." Rayna joked with her.

"I see one of my nieces where's the other?" Beverly asked.

"She's off with exploring with her second boyfriend. I'll give her a call so we can get to lunch and not have to rush." Deacon pulled out his phone and dialed Maddie's number.

* * *

"JC, why are you the only guy who isn't an idiot?" Maddie asked as they walked around outside the Jackson Convention Complex where they were playing that night.

"I can't have you holdin' me up to that high standard. I don't wanna let you down when I do somethin' stupid." JC made a joke. "Is this a Colt thing?"

"Yes this is a Colt thing. I've barely seen him in a month and he just seems to be ok with it. He doesn't text me or call me unless I do it first. As much as he gets the whole having parents in the public eye thing I feel like he doesn't get me. He's into a lot of stuff that I'm not really comfortable with. I don't really care to party a lot and he would be down to party any time." She used him as a sounding board. She held on to his hand a little tighter than normal.

"Maddie, you've gotta tell him this. Make him talk to you. If he makes you uncomfortable you have to tell him that. If he cares about you he's gonna listen." He wasn't sure what else to say to her.

"And we've been together for a couple of months now so all of our friends are pressuring us about having sex. It doesn't bother me, but I think it gets to him. Because when we do talk he drops not so subtle hints about it. I don't want that to be something I do just because it's what everyone else expects of me. I guess it's different because he's a guy and he can't be the only one of his friends that hasn't done it yet." She rolled her eyes.

"Maddie, that's somethin' that's entirely up to you. You don't have to do that with him if you don't think you're ready and you don't have to feel bad about it. No one else know how you feel. I'll say this if you're that unhappy with him and you feel like he doesn't care then there is nothin' that says you have to stay with him. You don't have to keep the same boyfriend that's not how this datin' thing works." He reasoned with her.

"See? This is what I mean. You're entirely too understanding for a guy. I'm starting to think that maybe you're perfect." She teased him.

"I'm far from perfect. I'm just a little older and wiser than you." He teased right back.

She glanced down at her phone when it rang. "That's my dad. I guess they are wanting us to get back for lunch."

"Come on, Princess Pain in the Ass, I'm a growin' boy I need my food. I need my food and I need to not hear about Colt again for at least a half hour." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head.

"You are a jerk and I can't stand you." She laughed.

"You love me," He laughed with her.

* * *

"Momma these are for you, Ray, these are for you, and Bev, these are for you." Deacon handed each woman a dozen roses. "Happy Mother's Day to the three most important women in my life. The woman who gave birth to me, the woman who I taught how to be a mother, and the woman who made me a daddy." He kissed his sister and his mother's cheeks and he pecked Rayna's lips gently.

"Gunnar, JC, take notes this is how a man scores brownie points." Beverly informed them.

"This definitely goes in the book of man wisdom and words to live by that Will and I are writing." Gunnar nodded his head.

"Or you know, you go on a road trip with your girlfriend, her momma, and her mawmaw." Scarlett chuckled and took Gunnar's hand.

"Or you let her baby cousin pee and spit up on you every chance he gets. I am Jayme's favorite target." Gunnar laughed.

"I think Jayme has gotten us all at some point." JC corrected him. "But both those are worthy of the man wisdom book."

Rayna covered Daphne's ears. "Askin' Jeff Fordham if he snorts coke off the nipples of underage call girls goes in the book of Freakin' Deacon sayings." She uncovered Daphne's ears.

"That definitely goes in a book of insults." Gunnar laughed again.

Deacon handed boxes to Rayna, June, and Beverly. "Here are your presents, ladies." He did it just to change the subject.

"June, open yours first." Rayna smiled at her.

June opened the box carefully. On top of a picture of a cute little house was a set of keys. "What is this?"

"That's your new house momma. It's close to our ranch and it has plenty of room for you to have the grandkids stay over anytime you want them to. There's even a cute little spot out back where you can plant a garden. I know how much you've always wanted a real garden." Deacon explained to her.

"Deacon John, this is too much there is no way that I can accept this." June's eyes teared up.

"Momma, I'm doin' extremely well right now and can afford it. I want you to have that house. I want you to be there for the grandkids. And I don't want you to ever have to work another day in your life as a diner waitress. I will admit that I ain't always been the best son, brother, or boyfriend, but I am now. That's from Ray, the kids, and me. We all want you close by. And havin' you close by of course includes Beverly. There's an apartment over the garage for her." Deacon smiled at her.

"Thank you, sweetheart, now come give your momma some sugar." June put both her hands on his cheeks and kissed his forehead.

"You're gonna paint my bedroom yellow for me aren't you, baby brother?" Beverly teased him.

"Bev, I love you, but I ain't paintin' a damn thing yellow." Deacon chuckled. "Go on and open up what's in that box."

Beverly took a pair of high quality headphones and a card with two phone numbers written on it out of the box. "Deacon, what is this?" She was confused.

"I got you those because Maddie and Daphne have both recently informed me that the headphones in the studio suck and they swear by these." Deacon explained. He could see she was still confused. "Bev, you've got a week's worth of studio time bought and paid for any time you want it. The number on top belongs to a good buddy of mine Kevin Bicks you give him a call and he will sit down and write with you. The number belongs to a guy named Critter Watkins he can set you up with a bunch of session players."

"Baby Brother, you didn't have to do this. I don't know what to say." Beverly hugged him tight.

"I didn't have to I wanted to. Kevin and Critter are both really good guys to work with. I would offer to help you, but I'm gonna be out on tour all summer. You can call me anytime for anythin' though. I've got you set up pretty well. It's your turn to take your shot now." Deacon smiled. He had wanted to do something nice for his sister.

"How did you manage all of this?" Beverly was really at a loss for words.

"Ray likes to joke that my middle name should be 'I Know A Guy'. It just happens that I know a couple of guys who owed me favors." Deacon replied.

"Wait, you know a guy named Critter?" Gunnar asked.

"Deacon knows a lot of guys with a lot of crazy nicknames he and Vince came up with." Rayna supplied.

"I confess that I don't actually know what Critter's real name is. I can't remember it if I even knew it to begin with. Vince and I called him Critter because his facial hair looks like unidentifiable road kill." Deacon admitted.

"Deacon don't ever change. I love you just the way you are." Rayna laughed at him.

"Ray, open your box now." Deacon encouraged her.

Rayna opened her box and gasped. "Oh, babe, tell me that you didn't." Inside the box was a plaque that read The Virginia Jaymes Wyatt Memorial Scholarship Presented by Highway 65.

"I did. I know how hard this day is on you and I wanted to do somethin' special for you. She gave the world her extraordinarily talented daughter, two granddaughters that are every bit as talented, and two grandsons who seem to be headed down the same path if the way they cry is any indication. Most importantly she gave me the woman who made me a daddy. And I think she has just a little bit more of a legacy to leave behind." Deacon stood beside her.

"I don't think you've ever been more perfect for me than right at this moment." Rayna had tears shining in her eyes.

"Like I said I know how hard this day has always been on you. So, I try to make it special." Deacon grinned at her.

"I know, baby, you always have." Rayna kissed him hard on the mouth. This was far from the first time he'd gone out of his way to make this day more bearable for her. He'd also been the person to give her, her first Mother's Day present after she'd had Maddie.

* * *

Knoxville, Tennessee 1988

Rayna sat on the balcony of the crappy little motel they had stayed at after playing some hole in the wall bar the night before. She wore one of Deacon's flannel shirts draped over her slender frame to ward off the chill in the morning air. She just stared off into space not looking at anything in particular. Mother's Day had been hard for her since losing her mother three years before. It was hard to believe that this would be her third Mother's Day without her and that she wasn't even in town to visit her grave. That was made worse by the fact that her father had just kicked her out of the house.

She jumped a little bit when she felt his scruffy beard brush across the tender flesh of her neck. "Good morning, I didn't expect you to be up so early after how hard you hit that after party last night."

"I woke up and your side of the bed was cold. I know we ain't been livin' together that long, but I'm already used to havin' you in my bed. I got lonely without you there." Deacon grinned against her neck.

"I've got you spoiled already." She reached up and threaded her fingers through his hair.

"Why don't you come back to bed?" He kissed her neck. "Babe, what's wrong?" He asked when that didn't get the response out of her that it normally did.

"I'm sorry, baby, I'm just not in the mood this morning. Today is Mother's Day and it's really hard on me, because I don't have a momma anymore." She apologized.

"Shit," He groaned and ran his fingers through his hair.

"What is it?" She asked him.

"Nothin' I just gotta go down to the gas station and make a call that I ain't lookin' forward to makin'. I'll grab some coffee while I'm down there. I'll be right back. Don't you go anywhere." He didn't want to mention the fact that he had to call his mother when she was so sad about missing hers.

"I'll be waiting, baby." She gave him a half smile and then she watched as he walked away.

Deacon returned twenty minutes later carrying a plastic bag and two cups of coffee in his hands. "Still right where I left you." He smiled. He handed her a coffee cup.

"I can hear Vince snoring just fine from out here I don't need to go back in the room and hear him snoring through the wall." She chuckled. "What do you have in the bag?" She took a sip of her coffee.

"We have a rose, a postcard like the kind that tourist buy, and we have one of those thimbles that says Knoxville on it." He pulled each item out of the bag as he named it off.

"What is all this, babe?" She wore a confused look on her face.

"There ain't no law I ever seen says that your momma can't get a postcard in heaven. I know that we aren't home so you can't go to her grave, but we can find a really pretty spot around here and leave it for her. And well the gas station was low on choices and the thimble seemed like a momma gift. I know you can't give it to her, but you can hang on to it for her." He explained every item.

"Deacon, if I wasn't sure of it before I am now. I love you, I love you more than it is possible to love another person. You are the best thing to ever happen to me." She looked at him teary eyed.

"I figured after the horrible phone call I just had with my momma that at least one of us should have somethin' that resembles a good day." He replied.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Dallas, Texas 2000

"No, stop, just stop it. Everything sounds wrong." Rayna pulled the monitors out of her ears and stormed off the stage.

The rest of the band looked to Deacon to know what to do. In the past he'd been the only one who could reach her when she got in a mood like that. He shifted around the stage uncomfortably. Part of him wanted to go after her and the other part of him thought it would be best to just leave her be it wasn't his place anymore. Just thinking those words caused him to die a little inside. It also made him crave a drink worse than he had in over a year.

"Deacon," Bucky walked up on the stage carrying Maddie on his hip.

"Yeah, Buck?" Deacon smiled at Maddie and made faces at her to make her laugh. At first he thought he'd have a hard time accepting Rayna's daughter with another man, but he'd quickly realized that he loved her for the mere fact that she was a part of the love of his life.

"Ray's locked herself in her room on the bus. She asked that you take care of Maddie for a little while she doesn't want to talk to anyone. This day is hard enough for her and then I think she and Teddy got into a fight earlier." Bucky informed him.

Deacon took his guitar off and sat it on the stand. "Today is Mother's Day isn't it?" He sighed. It seemed like that day slipped his mind every year because the relationship he had with his mother. "I'll take Maddie from you. Tracy can fill in for Ray on lead vocals and Steve can fill in for me as band leader. Sound check still has to get done."

"That sounds good to me." Bucky agreed and handed Maddie over to him. He put her diaper bag on Deacon's other shoulder.

"Come here, Miss Maddie," Deacon lifted her up and kissed her cheek. He was amazed at the strong bond he'd developed with her. "You know Uncle Deac has another little bug that's a big ten-year-old now." He told her as he carried her off the stage.

Maddie snuggled into his chest.

"That's right your momma and I had Scarlett out on the road with us once. I guess she's as close as I'm ever gonna come to havin' a daughter of my own. I had my chance at my happy ending and I missed it by a hair. If I could have gotten clean just a little bit sooner then I'd probably be your daddy instead of the only baby sitter that your momma trusts with you." He opened up to the infant.

"I may not be good husband or daddy material, but I am still the best guy around at cheerin' your momma up. I know just what to do to make her feel better. You in?" He looked down at her and took the smile on her face as agreement. "Yeah, you're in. Let's go do this."

Deacon climbed on the bus an hour later with Maddie in his arms. He could see that the bedroom door was still firmly closed so he put down the bags he'd carried in and sat on the cough with the little girl on his lap. "Hey, Ray, Maddie and I are here now. You don't have to come out if you don't want to, but we're here."

Five minutes later the bedroom door opened and Rayna emerged with red rimmed eyes and a puffy face from crying. "Well, it looks like someone had a good time with her Uncle Deac." She forced a smile when she saw the absolutely adorable pink dress that Deacon had bought for Maddie. It made her happy and tore her heart to shreds at the same time. He was so good with her and yet he didn't know he was her father.

"Ray, you gonna tell me what's wrong?" He asked staring at her intently.

"I talked to Teddy on the phone earlier and he told me that he couldn't come down to spend the day with us because he had some work thing he had to take care of. He said that we can just do this the next time we see each other. It's my first Mother's Day as a mother and my seventeenth without my momma. I just thought that things would be different this year that's all." She could still talk to him about anything.

"Open the plastic bag, Ray." He instructed her.

Rayna opened up the bag to find a postcard and one of those tiny silver spoons that said Dallas on the handle. "You remembered." She was touched by his gesture.

"I know it's not a thimble, but they only had the spoons. I figured you could use the postcard too. You can write your momma and tell her about her amazin' granddaughter." Deacon chuckled.

"It's perfect, thank you." She smiled at him.

"Maddie got you a little somethin' too. Grab the envelope that's in that bag." He told her.

Inside the envelope was a silver chain with a heart pendant dangling from it that said Momma with a musical note under it. Whatever tenuous hold Rayna had left on her emotions crumbled and the tears poured down her face again. Why hadn't she told him? Why hadn't she just waited for him to get out of rehab? Why didn't she just tell him right now? It wasn't too late. He'd been there for most of Maddie's life anyway.

"Shit, I mean shoot, Ray. I wasn't tryin' to make you cry. I've done enough of that to last you three lifetimes." Deacon misunderstood her tears and apologized thinking he'd once again done something to hurt her. Even when he had the best of intentions he still managed to screw things up when it came to her.

She shook her head and wiped her tears away. "Don't apologize this was just what I needed right now. I'm not crying because I'm sad I'm crying because I'm happy." She corrected him. She kissed Maddie's little cheeks and face. "Thank you, Bug, momma really needed somethin' good."

"You call her that a lot." He observed.

"It's what we always called Scarlett and now it's just force of habit when it comes to Maddie." What she hadn't said was it was fitting because they were both his girls. She went to kiss his cheek, but he pulled back. She looked at him hurt.

"Ray, don't look at me like that. I can't stand it. I made you look at me like that enough that I never wanna see that look on your face again. Listen, there's an unspoken line in the sand that we've obviously drawn between the two of us over the last nine months or so and this crosses that line." He warned her.

She leaned over and kissed his cheek anyway. "Screw that damn line, Deacon. I need you, I need my best friend back. I can't do this without you. Our performances aren't what they used to be and people are starting to notice that the spark is gone from our music. No more of this distance between us we are both grown adults who know how to behave. So, if I want to kiss your cheek I'm damn well gonna. Just like you are damn well gonna sit in here and help me eat those ribs I know you got from my favorite barbeque joint in this city." She put her foot down with him.

"Alright, whatever you say. Miss Maddie and I made a special trip just to get your ribs for you. I know that it's not a Belle Meade Mother's Day brunch like you had your heart set on, but it'll have to do." He grinned at her.

She rolled her eyes at him playfully and began taking the food out of the bags. "You are such a smart ass."

"I know it, but you still keep me around anyway." He winked.

She sat a plate of food in front of him and made herself a plate. "I can put her in the floor on her blanket if you want."

"Ray, I play guitar with her layin' on my chest while you take care of your press crap. I can eat and hold her at the same time." He assured her. It flattered him that she had just instinctively trusted him with her child.

She broke a little inside hearing him say that. That was how things should be how she'd always imagined they would be. Letting him spend so much one on one time with Maddie was her way of trying to make up for the fact that she was keeping him from his daughter. It was just as much for Maddie's benefit as his though. She wanted her daughter to have that strong bond with her father. And maybe somewhere not so deep down she secretly hoped that it would spark something and Deacon would question if she were his child. "Did you call your momma?" She asked quickly to cover up her emotions.

"I did you don't have to make sure I do that. That ain't your problem anymore." He replied. They ate in comfortable silence the dynamic between them having switched back to being almost as good as it once had been.

"Deacon, there's something that I need to tell you." Rayna looked at him halfway through their meal. This was it she was just going to tell him that he was Maddie's father and let the chips fall where they may.

"What is it, Ray?" Deacon stared back at her.

"Hey, Ray, I was just coming to check on you." Bucky walked onto the bus with possibly the worst timing ever. He looked between the two of them and how cozy they seemed together not really sure if he wanted to know what he'd just walked in on. "Sorry, if you're busy I can come back."

"No, Buck, it's fine." She sighed quietly. There was no way that conversation could have ended anywhere good. She would wait until Deacon was more firm in his sobriety and then she would tell him the truth. "Deacon, it was nothing. I just want to work some of our old songs back into the set list." She lied quickly.

"Sounds good to me." Deacon agreed.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Ray, why don't you go on and lift that plaque up and see what else you've got?" Deacon's voice pulled Rayna back to reality.

Rayna lifted the plaque. She smiled when she saw the postcard and the silver plated guitar pick that said Jackson on it. "Something else for my ever growing collection. Oddly enough this is the first guitar pick. You've given me thimbles, spoons, and bells. This is a nice change of pace."

"I thought that it was time for a little somethin' different in our Mother's Day tradition." Deacon grinned.

"Well, I love it and I love you, babe." Rayna stole a kiss from him.

"I love you too, baby, happy Mother's Day." Deacon whispered against her lips.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you enjoyed it. I really wanted to get this out to you ahead of the new episode tonight. Don't worry just because the hiatus is over doesn't mean this story is. I still have a ton of good stuff planned and I'm already thinking about a sequel. Until next time please review.


	44. Chapter 44

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is Walk Like a Man by Tim McGraw.

* * *

Chapter 44

" _Man the fights they had he'd cover up his ears. Thought big boys don't cry fought back all the tears. Momma used her makeup to hide the bruises on her face. In they morning they'd pretend that there'd never ever been a trace. His old man woke him up to help him find the car. Take the bus uptown outside some rundown bar and swore that he was quittin' and then he'd start to cry. And though the boy knew the truth sometimes he'd still believe that lie."_ Deacon strummed his guitar and looked at his mother as he sang. He had June sitting on a stool while he played for her.

" _When the sins of the father are the sins of the son all you do is crawl when you wanna run. And God gave boys their mommas cause they always see their promise and they help them understand how to walk like a man. Walk like a man."_ He smiled at June.

June looked at her son with tears in her eyes. The man that he'd become lately had exceeded her wildest expectations.

" _They moved a lot of places they never settled down. It got pretty old bein' the new kid in town. He'd always tell his friends my daddy's sick today. Said he be rich if he had a nickel every time he heard his momma say. The sins of the father are the sins of the son. Crawl before you walk, boy, walk before you run. Come on stand up straight I'm proud of you take my hand. I know you can walk like a man. Walk like a man."_ He put all his feelings and emotions into this song.

" _Your daddy's demons are callin' your name. Don't you listen to them cause they got no claim. Temptations may come that ain't no sin, but you get stronger every time that you don't give in. The sins of the father are the sins of the son you can't undo what has been done. You'll have to retrace his footsteps through the sand. And pray you find the love of a girl and take her by the hand and walk on walk like a man."_

"Happy Mother's Day, momma. I hope that in some way made up for all the ones I missed." He bent and kissed her cheek amid the roar of the crowd. "June Claybourne, ladies and gentlemen."

"Have I told you lately how amazing you are?" Rayna asked him as they lay in bed together on the tour bus.

"Only once or twice today, but it's always nice to hear." Deacon replied.

"You are the best son, brother, husband, and father in the world. I can't get over how attentive and loving you've been lately." She laid her head on his chest.

"That's a two-way street, baby, you've always loved me better than I deserved. We both know that there were times when I really didn't deserve it." He kissed the top of her head.

She ran her hand up and down his side. "I think that this is tied four ways for my best Mother's Day. There was my first as a momma of two, then there was that first one with you."

"What's the other one?" He asked.

"My first one as a momma. I was so mad at Teddy for not comin' down to Dallas to be with Maddie and me. And I ended up getting what I really wanted anyway. To spend the day with you and our little girl. That was the first time I almost told you that you were her father. Had Bucky not walked in when he did I would have." She replied.

"While I would have liked to hear it from you. I'm kinda glad you didn't. If you had told me then I know we would have worked everythin' out, but then we might not have had those two beautiful little boys that are sleepin' in their playpen right now. And you wouldn't have had the Squirt. So I'd say things worked out just the way they should have." He rubbed her back.

"You've gotta stop making me want you and that's all there is to it. I can say that I have never been this horny before in my life and we just went six weeks without having sex because I gave birth. We barely survived that I don't know how much longer we are gonna be able to stand this." She groaned.

"We will find a way to make it. At this point it's worth waitin' until our honeymoon. We come in off this tour next week. Then we have a couple things to take care of and we will be on our honeymoon before we come back celebrate Maddie's birthday and take off on tour again." He replied.

"I think I like that idea. We will have all the time and privacy that we need to explore each other properly if we do that. I'm not gonna argue with a good plan when I hear one." She grinned up at him.

"It's a plan then." He winked at her.

* * *

Deacon, JC, and Maddie sat around in a circle in the living area of the bus. Deacon was giving the younger musicians guitar lessons to improve their skill level.

" _Why can't we keep it on the sweet side? See how it feels to take the slow ride this time."_ They sang in unison.

"Listen to you two. Ya'll are soundin' better every day. Maddie, your chord progressions have improved dramatically over the last few sessions. Jimmy, I noticed the other night when I had to step off the stage for a couple songs to take care of the boys that you are playin' past Ray's mark a little fast. This is what you're doin'." Deacon played the way he'd heard JC playing. "This is what you need to be doin'.' He played the correct way.

"I didn't even realize that I was doin' that." JC admitted.

"It's my fault I've got you spoiled. You may be my bandleader and play lead guitar, but I play guitar and I always play the openings for my songs, so you are used to takin' your ques from me. I want you both to play the openin' chords for Just As I Am. I wanna see if I can pick up my que from either one of you." Deacon instructed them.

JC and Maddie both began to play.

" _You said come just as you are your skin and bones smell like a bar. You're sure you want me here this way? Ok, I'm on my way."_ Deacon sang the opening lines softly. "Jimmy, you nailed that one. Maddie, very well done. You both got that without a problem." He praised them.

"Thanks, dad," Maddie blushed.

"I think I probably just didn't switch gears fast enough the other night." JC threw out.

"I'm probably the only one that noticed. If Ray had noticed she would have said somethin'. Don't worry 'bout it. Now you know for next time." Deacon smiled reassuringly.

"Ya'll are sounding good in here." Rayna walked in from the back of the bus. "Deacon is a miracle worker when it comes to you young artists." She sat down beside her husband.

"They do sound pretty good don't they?" Deacon grinned. He couldn't be prouder if he tried.

"I just got off of a very interesting phone call with Bucky." Rayna paused to add a little suspense to the conversation. "Congratulations, Jimmy, Maddie, you two have a song on the charts. All We'd Ever Need is sitting at number five right now. That's not too shabby considering three of Deacon's other songs are in the top ten right now. That's a big deal even though you two were just the songwriters and not the performers."

JC and Maddie hugged each other excitedly.

"Oh my God! This is so amazing, JC." Maddie gushed.

"You and I do make pretty great music together." JC agreed.

"Looks like Highway Sixty-five is provin' to be a force to be reckoned with." Deacon grinned.

"That it is," Rayna agreed with him. "Bucky thinks that it would be a good idea for us to extend our duet album. It's somethin' we could work on while we are out on tour and then record everything once we get home."

"I don't have a problem with that if it's something you really wanna do." Deacon replied.

"It is something that I really wanna do. I also need to start thinking about my next album." Rayna rambled on a little bit.

"Baby, I'm here to help you anyway that you need. You just need to relax and not get too far ahead of yourself." Deacon tried to calm her down. He knew that she had the habit of taking on more than she could reasonably handle sometimes.

"I am relaxed." Rayna leaned against his side. "So, I see our oldest child and our adopted child. I know that the twins are down for their morning nap. Where's the Squirt?" She used his nickname for Daphne.

"She woke up not feelin' so good. She had a sore throat, a stuffy nose, and a little fever. I gave her some Tylenol, a mug of hot chocolate, and I tucked her into our bed to get some rest. We don't have a show tonight and I thought if I nipped it in the bud now she should be feelin' good enough to go on tomorrow night." Deacon explained to her.

"You are such a good daddy." Rayna kissed his cheek. "Your little outlaw and rebel are gonna be up from their nap any minute. I thought you might like to give them a bottle and do tummy time with them. They are both trying to roll over already. While you do that I was hoping to take these two off of your hands for a little bit. I have a project for them." She pointed at Maddie and JC.

"You can have 'em they did very well with their lesson today. I'm gonna go back to the sleepin' quarters and play with my dudes. There's more room for ya'll out here just holler if you need me." Deacon kissed the top of her head and went back to the sleeping area of the bus.

Rayna waited to make sure he was out of earshot before she spoke. "I wrote a song for Deacon and I was hoping that you two would help me put it to music and tweak the lyrics if need be." she made sure to keep her voice low.

"We'd love to help, mom." Maddie agreed brightly.

"Sure, whatever you need, you've got it." JC was eager to help in anyway that he could after everything she and Deacon had done for him.

"Ok, let's get to work while I have him distracted with the twins." Rayna pulled out a notebook that had her new song written in it.

* * *

Rayna and Deacon had chosen to end the tour the same place they had started it at the Ryman. Since they were back in Nashville they decided that they would head into the office and take care of a few things before their show that night.

"I don't even care that you two are back in town you don't do anything, but cause me trouble anyway. I just wanna see my baby boys." Tandy lifted Little Deacon and Jaymes out of their stroller and carried them to her office.

"Well, that's the last we've seen of them for a little while." Deacon chuckled.

"She'll give 'em back just as soon as they start fussing. We don't have to worry about her keeping them forever." Rayna laughed.

"It's good to see you two back here. We have things to discuss." Bucky couldn't give them a minute to adjust before he started talking business with them.

"Ok, Buck, we can talk in my office." Rayna led the two men back to her office.

"Where do you want to start?" Deacon took a seat on Rayna's couch.

"We've got things squared away for the Angels and Outlaws Tour. So far it seems to be an overwhelming success. Tickets sold out within minutes. Avery has been in the studio and he has had some very promising results. The only thing is we are gonna need to find someone to produce his album for him. He's not Deacon or I would say let him produce it himself. We also got the girls set up with a few concerts on their own while you're out on the road. It's nothing too big, but it's just enough to get them out there and get people hyped up for their album. Glenn handled that and he's the best person to handle it for them." Bucky reported.

"That sounds good, Buck. Ya'll have been busy while we were gone." Rayna smiled at him gratefully.

"Juliette should be back in town for the premiere of her movie and she's supposed to be stopping by if she has a minute. You guys have a few packed days before you go on your honeymoon. You have your court date for the girls tomorrow, but Lamar assures us it's just a formality. You have the boys' baptism to get through and then you have JC's birthday party and the gig he's playing. That should about cover it and then you two are out of here for a week to have some alone time together. Ray, you need to get with your sister at some point, because she has been dealing with the contractor for you and she wants you to look at some color swatches. That's all I have for you. If you need anything else you know to just let me know." Bucky gave them the rundown of everything that had been going down.

"Thanks, Buck, I don't know what we would do without you sometimes." Deacon told him.

"One more thing. Emily has been vetting personal assistants for you and she wants you to take a look at the candidates that she has picked out. Whether you want one or not you need one. Don't be difficult about it just help her pick the right person for you." Bucky pleaded with him.

"Ok, I will cooperate even though I don't think I need one." Deacon relented.

"Avery is back in the writer's room with Scarlett, Gunnar, and Will. Deacon, I'm pretty sure that they could use a little bit of help if you're up for it." Bucky told him.

"I'll go see what I can do to help out. Ya'll know where I'll be if you need me." Deacon excused himself.

Juliette waltzed into the office an hour later. She looked around like she was lost.

"Juliette, it's good to see you. I heard that you were coming in today. Do you want me to see if Rayna is free?" Emily greeted her former boss.

"Emily, I need a copy of Will's schedule. I have a show that I want to book for him I just need to know if he's free." Glenn walked up without paying attention to anything else because his face was buried in his iPad.

"Rayna told me that you were both working here now. I guess I just didn't expect to see you this happy." Juliette mused a little sadly.

"Hey, kiddo, it's so good to see you." Glenn pulled her into a big hug. "You look good." No matter how many times she fired him or went off on him for no reason he couldn't give up on her because she was basically his kid.

"It's good to see both of you. I'm glad that you both seem to be doing so well." Juliette felt sad, but she knew she had no right to. She had fired them she couldn't expect them to wait around for her forever.

"Rayna is in her office with Bucky let me take you back to her. I know that she's gonna wanna see you." Glenn put his arm around her shoulders.

"Glenn, I'm emailing you Will's schedule right now. There are a few things that can be moved around if they need to be." Emily called after them.

"Juliette, look at you." Rayna stood from behind her desk and hugged the younger woman tightly.

"It's good to see you again." Juliette hugged back. "Glenn and Emily seem to be doing very well here."

"Glenn is the assistant head of A and R and Emily is the head personal assistant. What that really means is she watches the boys and Cadence, but mostly it's Deacon that she has to babysit. They both fit right in like they are part of the family." Rayna smiled at her.

"I'm just glad they both aren't out in the cold scrambling to find a job." Juliette sighed.

"How's your treatment going?" Rayna asked her.

"It's going. I've been doing three sessions a week and I'm on some antidepressants. My therapist seems to be happy with the progress I'm makin', but I don't see where anythin' has changed yet." Juliette shrugged.

"How are things on tour with Luke?" Rayna wanted to make sure that Luke wasn't doing anything that was going to cause Juliette to have a setback.

"He's been alright. He hasn't been too bad. Every now and then he will check in and ask me how I'm doin', but that's about it. I didn't tell him about my postpartum because I didn't want him to have an excuse to throw me off his tour." Juliette informed her.

"As long as you're doing ok that's all that matters. You get to tell whoever you want to tell that's your business. Have you talked to Avery at all?" Rayna leaned against her desk.

"I've talked to him on the phone a few times and I've facetimed with him and Cadence, but that's been the extent of it. I'm supposed to see him while I'm in town and he's supposed to go that movie premiere with me." Juliette sighed.

"He's back in the writer's room and I'm sure that he has Cadence with him. Since all of his usual babysitters are back there too. Come on, let's go say hi." Rayna put her hands on her shoulders not giving her a chance to say no. "Hey, ya'll look who's here."

"Juliette, it's great to see you." Deacon gave her a warm hug.

"It's good to see you too, Deacon." Juliette hugged him back tightly. He treated her better than she deserved most of the time. She pulled away from him and turned to look at her husband.

"Juliette," Avery's voice was barely above a whisper.

"Will, Gunnar, Scarlett, how 'bout ya'll join me in my office and help me run through the details for Jimmy's surprise party?" Deacon could tell that the couple needed a minute alone.

Gunnar, Scarlett, and Will all jumped to their feet quickly. None of them wanted to be around for the awkward reunion that was about to unfold.

"I will be right in my office if either of you need me." Rayna made sure that both Juliette and Avery knew where to find her if they needed her.

"So," Avery stood up and jammed his hands in the back pockets of his jeans.

"So," Juliette parroted. She crossed her arms over her chest. "I guess this is the part where I say I'm sorry. I really am sorry, Avery. I never meant to hurt you or Cadence."

"You're sick you shouldn't have to apologize for that. I never should have pushed you as hard as I did. And I damn sure shouldn't have let you run off on tour with Luke thinking that I hated you and wanted nothing more to do with you. I should have called you and let you know that I still love you and I'm still here for you. Sure Cadence had to be taken care of, but that didn't mean that I had the right to make you think I'd given up on you." Avery could admit that he had been wrong too. He'd tried to push her into getting help knowing damn well that she had a tendency to lash out when she felt cornered.

"I don't blame you though. I probably would have given up on me too. Honestly I still think that you're savin' yourself and our daughter a whole lot of pain if you just cut me loose. It wouldn't be anything that I didn't deserve." Juliette shrugged her shoulders.

"You don't deserve that. You deserve better than how I've treated you lately. I should have acted like I love you as much as I say I do. I should have made sure that Cadence was safe and then I should have gone after you and made you see that there is no way I could ever give up on you and that I'm gonna help you even if you don't know how to help yourself at the moment." Avery replied.

"You were right I do have postpartum and I'm getting help for it. I'm in therapy three times a week and I'm on antidepressants. I'm trying to get better and to be the wife and mother that you both deserve." Juliette didn't want him to see how much his words had touched her. She didn't want to go to pieces in front of him.

Avery was going to reply, but the baby monitor went off. "That's Cadence I should go get her she's probably hungry, but I will be right back." He excused himself.

Deacon was in the room that doubled as the in office nursery when Avery came in. He was fussing over his boys. Tandy had had pressing things to take care of.

Avery went over and picked Cadence up. "Deacon, right now is one of those times I could really use some of your man wisdom and words to live by. I hope you're up for it."

"Shoot," Deacon told him.

"Juliette is here and she really sounds contrite and like she has her act together. I'm just ambivalent about letting her around our daughter. I don't want her to backslide and break her heart. I don't know what to do in this situation." Avery ran his hand through his hair and sighed.

"You don't leave her alone with her. Not yet anyway not until you're comfortable with it and ready for that step. That doesn't mean you don't allow her to be a mother though. That right there is a hungry cry. Get her a bottle and take her to her momma. You hold them both while Juliette feeds her and that's how you start rebuildin' the trust and workin' your way back to bein' a family again. Plus, it let's Juliette know that she's not alone and you're right there to catch her if she falls." Deacon gave some of his no nonsense advice.

Avery grabbed a bottle and clapped Deacon on the back. "I don't know what I would do without you sometimes."

Juliette still stood in the writer's room chewing on her bottom lip nervously when Avery returned.

"So, Cadence is hungry and I thought that you might like to feed her." Avery held up the bottle.

"Avery, I don't know. It's been such a long time and I don't want to upset her." Juliette wasn't crazy about the idea.

"It's ok, you don't have to do it alone. I will just hold both of you." Avery assured her. He sat down on the couch.

After a moment's hesitation Juliette sat down on his lap and allowed him to place their daughter in her arms. She accepted the bottle and place it in her daughter's mouth. Cadence spit the bottle out and began wailing at the top of her lungs. "See? She hates me and she wants nothing to do with me."

"That's not true, try again." Avery coaxed her. He rubbed Cadence's head gently. "It's ok, baby girl, let your momma feed you."

Juliette took a deep breath and gave it another try. This time Cadence accepted the bottle without a fight.

* * *

"Maddie, don't jostle me around right now. I just ate. I should have known goin' to that buffet was a bad idea. I take all you can eat as a dare." JC groaned when Maddie tried to jump up on his back.

"JC, I think you'll live. Carrying me around on your back will help you work off everything you just ate. You want to be in top form for sound check don't you?" Maddie jumped up on his back anyway.

"You are the only person that I know who could talk me into carryin' you around backstage at the Ryman. You better appreciate me." JC just gave into her demands. It was easier than arguing with her most of the time.

"I appreciate you so much. You should know that by now." Maddie kissed his cheek sweetly.

"You're gonna keep up with me and make us both late." His neck, ears, and face blushed the color of a tomato. He liked the feel of her lips against his skin a little more than he should have.

"What are they gonna do? Fire us? I sincerely doubt that. If we are a few minutes late it's not gonna be a problem." She quipped sarcastically.

"It's probably gonna be a problem. I can feel my cell goin' off in my pocket like it's 'bout to explode. That can only mean that it's Rayna. She's the only person that texts me that much when she wants somethin." He corrected her.

She took his phone out of his pocket and answered it. "Hi, mom,"

"Maddie? I called Jimmy. Why are you answering his phone?" Rayna questioned on the other end of the line.

"Because he is currently carrying me to the Ryman on his back. He took the all you can eat buffet as a dare and he had to prove he was up to the challenge. He felt like his manhood was being called into question and now he has to walk it off so he can move around the stage." Maddie replied.

Rayna laughed. "Just get here soon. You both need to get changed and ready. I love you, be safe."

"I love you too, mom. We are always safe." Maddie hung up the phone. "You better move faster, horsey. My momma is looking for us." She teased.

"I'm movin' as fast as I can. I sincerely regret that last piece of cornbread." JC grumbled.

Rayna and Deacon were standing backstage waiting for the band to come back from their break.

"You happy to be done for a few weeks?" Deacon asked her.

"As nice as this has been I'm excited to have my husband all to myself for a little while." Rayna wrapped her arms around his neck. They both turned their heads when they heard someone clear their throat.

"Excuse me, Rayna, Deacon, I was hoping that I could talk to both of you." Colt looked down at the floor sheepishly.

"Sure, sweetie. What is it?" Rayna smiled at him. She elbowed Deacon in the side to make sure that he behaved himself.

"I just wanted to apologize to you both in person. I understand that you grounded Maddie from me because we don't make the best decisions together. I really care about her and I really miss her though. I can't promise that I'll never mess up again or that I'll always be perfect, but I promise to do my best not to put her in another situation that could get her hurt or in trouble ever again." Colt stammered over his words a little bit. He offered his hand to Deacon.

"Apology accepted. It takes a big man to come here and say what you just said. I respect you for that." Deacon took his hand and shook it grudgingly.

"Maddie, you're heavier than you think you are damn it. If I pass out you're gonna feel bad." JC bitched as he carried Maddie in.

"Oh, you poor abused thing. You'll survive." Maddie teased him. She jumped down off of his back and rushed over to Colt when she saw him standing there. "Colt! You're here." She threw her arms around him.

"This is your last concert for this tour of course I'm here. I couldn't think of anywhere else I'd want to be right now." Colt hugged her back and kissed her cheek.

"I'm just gonna go make sure that my guitar is in tune or somethin' like that." JC's face fell. He wanted to get as far away from those two as possible. He walked away before he was forced to make conversation with Colt.

"So, listen, Colt, we are having a birthday party for JC tomorrow. And I would really like for you to be there. But only if you think the two of you can get alone." Maddie told him in a hushed whisper.

"Sure, I'd love to be there. Just let me know when and where." Colt forced a smile. He didn't understand what he infatuation was with JC, but it was best if he just went with it.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	45. Chapter 45

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers .

* * *

Chapter 45

"Ok, everybody smile and act like you like each other." Tandy held a camera in her hands. They stood outside the courthouse after the judge had issued orders changing both the girls' names and finalizing Daphne's adoption.

Rayna and Deacon stood behind the girls each other them holding one of the twins. Maddie stood in front of Deacon and Daphne stood in front of Rayna. Each of the girls held up their new birth certificates that listed their last name as Claybourne and Deacon as their father. They all wore huge smiles on their faces.

Tandy snapped the picture quickly. "All done. That wasn't as horrible as you thought it was going to be. Now I just want one with Deacon and his girls."

Deacon handed Jaymes over to Rayna and he put an arm around each of his girls. They smiled and let Tandy take their picture.

"With that out of the way we have a surprise party that we need to go get ready for." Tandy ordered.

"What's goin' on with that?" Deacon asked.

"We are having him over to the house for lunch and we are going to give him the presents that we got him. Your job is to pick those up and keep them hidden. Maddie, it's your job to get him there. Then I'm counting on Will to keep him busy until we get him to the Bluebird tonight." Rayna gave them the run down.

"Who all is coming to the house this afternoon?" Tandy asked she had to keep all the ducks in a row.

"Will, Scarlett, Gunnar, Avery, and you know it goes without saying that June and Beverly will both be there. You know just family. I think daddy is coming too." Rayna listened off.

"How'd you talk daddy into coming?" Tandy was surprised.

"I didn't June did. Apparently she promised him a pie if he showed up and behaved himself." Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"At least we finally found someone who can control him." Tandy laughed.

"Come on, we've gotta get Ms. Maddie over to Jimmy's and we have to get to the dealership." Deacon urged them on. The women in his life were bound and determined to make him late for everything.

"Emily is having Buck drop her at the dealership. Try not to have her gone too long. The PAs get a little out of control without her there to keep them in line." Tandy pleaded with them.

"We won't keep her longer than we have to. That'll all depend on how quick I can get your sister to move." Deacon joked.

"Oh I know." Tandy shook her head. "Am I taking the little men with me so you can conduct business or are you keeping them?"

"We are gonna drop them off at the house with daddy and June once we finish up at the dealership and then go to run our other errand. We know that you have more important things to do today than look after the boys. I know that you and Buck are still taking care of merchandising for the Angels and Outlaws tour." Rayna replied.

"We are, but if ya'll don't mind I'm gonna take Ms. Daphne with me. It's rare that I get to spend one on one time with one of my favorite nieces." Tandy smiled.

"How 'bout it, Squirt? You wanna go spend some time with Aunt Tandy or do you wanna come with momma and me?" Deacon asked her.

"I wanna go with Aunt Tandy." Daphne chirped happily.

"Alright, it's settled then. We will see everyone at the house at one." Rayna laid down the law.

* * *

"So, Daphne, how does it feel to be a Claybourne now?" Tandy asked her youngest niece as they drove back to the office.

"I don't feel any different. And that's a good thing. I don't feel like I'm the outsider in my own family anymore." Daphne gave her aunt a small smile.

"Sweetie, if something is bothering you, you know that you can talk to me about it." Tandy replied.

"It just feels like my dad doesn't want me anymore so he pawned me off on Deacon because he thinks he owes him for taking care of Maddie." Daphne admitted.

"I can tell you that that's not true at all. Teddy wants you he just doesn't want you to have any trouble at school because of the things that he's done. And I happen to know for a fact that Deacon loves you very much. You're one of his girls and he will tell that to anyone who is willing to listen." Tandy reached over and squeezed her knee reassuringly.

"I didn't think you liked Deacon very much." Daphne's words came out as a statement, but it was a question.

"Honestly, I didn't used to like Deacon at all, but over the past few months he has really proven himself to me and I've seen the side of him that your mom has always told me existed. He would do anything for any of us and we wouldn't even have to ask him. He really is a good man. He would drop everything and come running if one of us said that we needed him and that includes me no matter how mean I am to him sometimes." Tandy had to grudgingly admit that she liked Deacon.

"What if mom and Deacon get divorced like mom and dad did? Then I'll lose another daddy." Daphne asked innocently.

"That's the one thing that you don't have to worry about happening. Your mom and Deacon have gone through a lot to be together and there isn't much that can tear them apart. You're too young to worry about such grown up things. The only thing that matters is you're always going to be loved and taken care of." Tandy promised her.

"I guess you're right." Daphne shrugged.

"Of course I'm right. I'm always right you can just ask your mom or your Uncle Bucky and they will tell you that. I'm here anytime that you need me all you have to do is say the word." Tandy smiled at her.

* * *

"Mr. and Mrs. Claybourne it's a pleasure to be able to serve you today. What can I help you with?" The dealer at the car dealership asked them. He looked to be in his early twenties and he had the smooth baby face to prove it.

"We are in the market for a few new cars. We already know exactly what we want. So, that should make your job easier on you." Rayna smiled at him.

"What did you have in mind?" He asked them.

"We need an SUV with third row seating because we have two car seats that we need to put in there. And we are also looking for two new trucks. I will let my husband take care of that he knows exactly what he wants. He can even show you. I'm still trying to decide on a color." Rayna answered.

"Well, what can I do you for, Mr. Claybourne?" He asked.

"First of all you can call me Deacon." Deacon gave him a charming grin.

"In that case call me Rusty." Rusty extended his hand for Deacon to shake.

Deacon shook his hand. "What I need is a Chevy Silverado 2500 diesel four door extended cab four by four. Preferably in black. With an extended bed."

"I can do you one better than that I can even throw in heated leather seats and tinted windows at no extra charge. All you have to do is say the word and you can drive off the lot with it today." Rusty replied. "After all it's not every day that I get to do business with The Deacon Claybourne. You're the whole reason I ever even picked up a guitar. My momma used to play your music for me to put me to sleep at night. This is just my day job until I can get somethin' in the music business."

"I'm flattered. It's normally my wife who people gush over like that." Deacon was still getting used to his new found popularity as a solo artist.

"Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne were staples in my household growin' up. But you were the guy with the golden fingers and the beautiful girl. You were kinda an idol of mine. About a Girl has to be the best record that any male country artist has put out in the last decade." Rusty actually blushed.

"I'm a pretty lucky guy that way." Deacon grinned. "I'll take the truck that you just mentioned. Now I need somethin' else like that. It's a birthday present for my godson and I need it today."

"How old is he?" Rusty asked.

"He's turnin' nineteen today and he's a cowboy." Deacon replied.

"I think I have just the thing for him. We'll let your wife look around and she if she finds anythin' that she likes while I show you this." Rusty led him over to a red Chevy pickup. "This is much the same thing that you wanted. The only difference is it's red and it's a 1500. It comes with all the bells and whistles that the truck you want has it's just a little less powerful. What do you think?"

"I think that this is perfect for him. I'll take this, the truck I want, and then whatever my bride picks out." Deacon replied.

Rusty pulled a radio off his belt. "Get the red 1500 in spot A2 gassed up and get the windows tinted right away. Do the same thing for the black 2500 in spot B5. They are movin' off the lot today I need this done within the hour. I'll have another car for you to work on soon and I will get back to you. Just get those done first."

Two porters rushed out of the dealership and got the trucks moved into the service bay.

"You work fast and you are pretty good at givin' orders." Deacon observed with a twinkle in his eye.

"I have to be pretty damn authoritative soundin' or they would never listen to me 'round here. They think just because I'm twenty-three that means they can walk all over me." Rusty chuckled.

"Well, I'm impressed at any rate." Deacon nodded his head in appreciation.

"Let's go see how your wife is doin' while they are takin' care of those trucks." Rusty patted Deacon on the back.

Rayna was eyeballing a Suburban when they found her. It was black with chrome wheels and leather seats. "Babe, I think I'm in love." She didn't have to turn around to know that Deacon was behind her.

"Is this what you really want?" Deacon asked. He knew that there was no changing her mind once she had her heart set on something.

"This is what I really want, babe. Look at how pretty she is." Rayna gushed.

"If you like it that much. I guess we are just gonna have to get it for you." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

Rusty pulled out his radio again. "I need you to come get the black suburban in D7 and take it to have the windows tinted. I need you to put a rush on that and those two trucks I just sent back to you." He turned to Rayna and Deacon again. "This is gonna take a couple of hours if you two have somethin' else that you need to do."

"Yeah, we have a way to occupy ourselves for that one." Deacon pulled a business card out of his wallet and handed it to the young man. "Just call the cell number on there when you're ready for us to pick them up. We will pay for them then." He looped his arm around Rayna's shoulders.

"Sure thing, Deacon. I'll call you just as soon as they are ready to roll." Rusty smiled.

"Come on, babe, we have one more thing to take care of." Deacon and Rayna walked off down the street to the music shop that he liked to frequent.

"Look at that Mr. and Mrs. Claybourne in the flesh." An older man walked out from behind the counter to greet Deacon.

"Hey, Dell, it's good to see you too." Deacon pulled the older man into an enthusiastic hug.

"I didn't expect to see your ugly mug around here anytime soon." Dell laughed.

"I'm only here to pick up a guitar that I ordered weeks ago. Don't worry I don't plan on lettin' the wife touch anythin' guitar related. We both know that would be a disaster." Deacon joked.

"I'll never understand how Virgie had a daughter who can mangle a guitar the way that one can." Dell's dull blue eyes sparkled with mirth.

"Ya'll know that I'm standin' right here and I can hear you, right?" Rayna turned to scowl at the two men. She was busy browsing the pianos.

"They would have talked about you better if you hadn't been standing right there." Watty walked into the shop.

"Watty, are you stalking me these days?" Rayna threw her arms around her neck.

"No I'm not. I just happened to run into you by luck. I do need to talk to you, but that can wait. I hear that Mr. Grayson is havin' his showcase tonight at the Bluebird and I'm very excited to have scored an invite. Buck had me take a listen to Cattleman's Gun and with the right two of three songs it would make one hell of a vinyl album." Watty hugged her back.

"Watty, you should come on by the house for lunch. You're family. It's his birthday today and I think he'd get the biggest kick out of you bein' there." Deacon suggested as he inspected the electric guitar that Dell had brought out from the back.

"I'd be honored to come. Lord knows Vince was like the son I never wanted, but got anyway." Watty chuckled.

* * *

" _Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear JC happy birthday to you."_ Maddie sat on the edge of JC's bed with a cupcake that had a lit candle on it while she sang to him.

JC woke up with a huge grin on his face. "Maddie, you didn't have to do this."

"You're my best friend of course I had to do this, now I don't want to hear another thing about it. Blow out your candle and make a wish." She ordered him.

He took the cupcake from her and blew out the candle. "Happy now?"

"Very happy. Now I just need to get you up and dressed because I have very fun things planned for us this afternoon. Hurry up we don't want to be late." She kissed his cheek sweetly. "Happy birthday, I love you, buddy."

"Thanks, I love you too, pal." He blushed, but he got up and started getting ready like she had instructed him.

"Maddie, if I ever went anywhere with you that you didn't forget somethin' I wouldn't know how to act." JC groused as they walked into Rayna and Deacon's house.

"Oh, hush, you love me and you know it." She smirked at him over her shoulder. She'd brought him in through the back entrance so he didn't see all the cars parked in the driveway. She had already texted everyone to let them know that they were on their way in through the kitchen door.

"What the hell is this?" JC looked around and saw all of his friends gathered in the kitchen.

"This is your big birthday lunch/dinner we had it late in the day for a reason because you've got a really big surprise coming up later." Rayna smiled at him. She went over and kissed his cheek. "Happy birthday, sweet boy. I know that your daddy is looking down on you right now smiling."

Deacon walked over and hugged him. "Happy birthday, Jimmy. You're two times the man that Vince was and I know he would be so proud of that."

"Texas forever," Will whooped and clapped him on the back.

"Texas forever," JC repeated. "Some best friend you are lettin' me get ambushed like this."

"Hey, in our defense Rayna can be very scary and we don't tell her no if we can help it." Gunnar wasn't about to go down for this.

"Suck it up and enjoy it." Scarlett rolled her eyes at him playfully.

"If anyone deserves a fuss made out of their birthday it's you." Sadie told him.

"They didn't tell me for fear that I would warn you. They got me here under the guise of Cadence having a play date with Deac and Jayme." Avery was quick to shift the blame off of himself.

June walked over and put a hand on each other JC's cheeks. "You look so much like your daddy did at this age. I can't tell you how proud I am to know that you turned out like him in all his good ways. Now I hope you're hungry because I made all of your favorites." She kissed both his cheeks.

JC could grudgingly admit that he had a really good time at his impromptu birthday lunch. As usual June had outdone herself with her cooking.

"June, I don't know what you put in these pies, but they are absolutely amazing as usual. I'm gonna have to start buying bigger pants if you keep cooking like this." Lamar actually made a joke.

"I thought I cut you off from the pie train. I will not be held responsible for your next bypass surgery." June laughed at him.

"That's not happenin' is it?" Beverly whispered to Tandy.

"I don't know and I don't think I want to know, but I intend to find out." Tandy whispered back.

"Both of you leave it alone. He's being have and he's not trying to burn Nashville to the ground and fiddle in the ashes." Bucky added his two cents in on the matter.

"Jimmy, you ready for presents?" Deacon asked to change the subject. If Tandy and Beverly were left to their own devices too long bad things were bound to happen.

"Ya'll didn't have to get me anythin'." JC blushed.

"You're family of course we did." Rayna dismissed his statement.

"Open mine first." Lamar handed him an oblong package wrapped in paper that had pictures of hunting dogs on it.

JC tore into the package and he gasped. Inside the box was a brand new Remington 12-gauge shotgun with an oak wood stock. "Mr. Wyatt, thank you. This is too much I really can't accept this."

"Nonsense, like Rayna said you're family. And if nothing else I always take care of my family. From what I understand you're an avid hunter and every hunter needs a good shotgun. My late wife owned some very nice property that is good for hunting. You're welcome to use it anytime you want. And you can call me Lamar." Lamar told him.

"Mine next," Will handed him a box wrapped in paper that resembled the Texas flag.

JC opened it to find a Texas Longhorns jersey and a belt buckle with the Texas flag on it. "Thank you, Will, you didn't have to get me anythin'."

"We're best friends of course I did. That's from Kevin and me. He would have liked to be here this afternoon, but he had to work." Will replied.

"You can open this one next. It's from Gunnar and me." Scarlett handed him a box wrapped in festive paper.

"You guys got me a Dallas Cowboy's jersey and a vintage Roy Acuff poster. Thank you, I love it." JC gushed.

"Here, JC, you can open mine now." Daphne handed him a box.

JC opened it with a huge smile on his face. "You shouldn't have spent your money on me, kiddo. I really love this though. Thank you." She had gotten him an iPad, an iPod, and a set of expensive headphones. He kissed her cheek.

Avery tossed JC a set of keys. "This is from Juliette, Cadence, and me. It's a key to the house. You're welcome to use the in home recording studio anytime that you want to."

"Thanks, I don't wanna put ya'll out." JC blushed.

"Nonsense, you ain't putting us out. Juliette knows that you're a good friend of mine and she likes knowing that that studio is being put to good use when she's not around." Avery replied.

"Here, buddy." Maddie handed him a wrapped package.

"Maddie, you really shouldn't have done this. Thank you, Cricket." JC was floored. She'd gotten him a leather notebook with his initials engraved on the front and a MacBook. He stood up and pulled her into a huge hug.

"I wanted to. Daph, got you the iPad and the iPod to keep you entertained while we are out on the road. You needed the computer and notebook so we can record some songs together on the road before we can get into a studio. I don't know about you, but I'm not satisfied with just one song on the charts." Maddie hugged him back tightly. Colt hadn't been invited to this intimate birthday party he was invited to the surprise party later.

Tandy handed him two packages. "These are from me and Bucky."

JC opened both boxes to find a brand new cowboy hat and a brand new pair of boots and a new red shirt with pearl snaps. He went over and kissed Tandy's cheek. "Thank you, I really appreciate this." He shook Bucky's hand.

"As your head of A and R I can't have you running around in a beat up cowboy hat and boots. And I draw the line at Deacon being the only artists to wear flannel and denim all the time." Bucky chuckled.

"And this is from me." Sadie handed him a box.

JC couldn't help chuckling when he opened it. "You got me an old fashioned Texas Rangers' badge. I absolutely love this, Sadie. And you got me a replica that doubles as a belt buckle."

"It was the least I could do and it seemed like you. After all you're my knight in shinin' armor." Sadie pinched his cheek playfully. "I got one for Will too. That way you can do your Texas forever thing."

"At least someone appreciates our catchphrase." Will laughed.

"Leave it to Sadie to be the only one who respects it." JC agreed.

"This is somethin' that every self respecting artist should have." Watty gave him a record player, a Willie Nelson vinyl album, a Waylon Jennings vinyl album, and a Johnny Cash album.

"Thank you very much, Mr. White. This is amazin." JC couldn't believe that a country music legend had given him a birthday present.

"You don't have to call me Uncle Watty, but I would appreciate it if you would at least call me Watty. I look forward to playin' your songs on my radio show for a long time to come." Watty winked at him.

"Elvis, come here, boy!" June called out to the dog. Elvis trotted into the room a moment later with a little blue tick puppy on his heels. She stooped down and picked the puppy up. "Happy birthday, Jimmy." She handed him the dog.

"Oh wow, Momma June, you didn't have to get me a dog." JC grinned from ear to ear. She had insisted that he call her Momma June since that's what Vince had called her.

"Of course I did. Every hunter needs a good bird dog. He's not from the same litter as Elvis, but he does have the same parents so he's pure bred and he's trained already. He doesn't have a name yet that's up to you to decide." June kissed his forehead.

"Thank you, ya'll have made this one of the best birthdays I've ever had." JC spoke from the heart.

"You're not through yet. You haven't gotten your presents from Deacon, the boys, and me." Rayna told him.

Deacon put a tackle box on the dining room table. He opened it to show him it was full of fishing lures and other tackle. "This is from Jayme. It's a birthday present and an apology for all the times he's peed or spit up on you."

JC went over and kissed Jaymes' head. "Thank you, Jayme, your buddy JC loves it."

Deacon produced a very expensive bait caster fishing pole. "And this is from Deac. Along with an invitation to go fishin' at the cabin or the new house any time you want to. You are always welcome in our home."

JC kissed Little Deacon's head now. "You sure do give good presents for such a little guy. Thank you."

"Now, for your big presents." Deacon handed him a set of keys.

"Uncle Deacon, what's this?" The confusion was written all over his face.

"Why don't you hit the key fob and see?" Deacon grinned.

JC hit the key fob and heard a beeping noise. He went to the front window and hit the button again. He saw the headlights on a red Silverado light up. "Uncle Deacon! You bought me a new truck!" He exclaimed.

"The truck is from me and Rayna." Deacon accepted a hug from him.

"Thank you, Aunt Ray." JC hugged Rayna so hard he lifted her off the ground.

"You're so welcome, sweet boy." Rayna kissed the top of his head. She couldn't help thinking that that Aunt Ray and Uncle Deacon stuff was gonna have to go if he and Maddie ever got their heads out of their asses.

"This, this is from me." Deacon laid a guitar case on the table.

JC opened the guitar case and just stared at it reverently for a moment. "Uncle Deac, this is a Gibson Les Paul. Oh my God, this is amazin'. Thank you doesn't even cover it." The guitar was made out of Cherrywood.

"Well, I couldn't very well have my bandleader keep borrowin' my guitars to play. Besides that, you're gonna be a front man soon enough and you're gonna need it." Deacon replied.

"I've got one more present for you, but it isn't really a present because you earned it." Rayna handed him a frame with a bow on it. "Congratulations, Jimmy, Sinner Like Me went platinum."

"We are all so very proud of you, Jimmy. Keep up the good work." Deacon praised him.

"It killed me not to call you when I first found out about it. But Ray wanted to keep it a surprise." Bucky added.

"Way to go, Kid." Tandy congratulated him.

"So any thoughts about what you're gonna name the dog?" Maddie asked him.

"His name is Blue. His big brother's name is Elvis. And one of the only memories I have of my daddy is that he used to sing Blue Suede Shoes to me." JC contentedly stroked the puppy in his arms. He didn't know how he'd gotten so lucky, but he wasn't gonna question it.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I wanted to keep this chapter fun and light because I've got a couple heavy things coming up next chapter. Until next time please review.


	46. Chapter 46

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are The Way I Like to Remember It and How a Cowboy Lives by Trent Willmon.

* * *

Chapter 46

"Will, do I want to know how you got us both roped into playin' the Bluebird tonight after we spent all on Rayna and Deacon's property buildin' shootin' lanes?" JC grumbled and grabbed both his guitar cases out of the back of Will's truck.

"Bucky called and said that they needed a couple last minute performers and that we would do just as well as anyone else. He said that I need to stop bein' a recluse and you need the exposure." Will fed him the line that Rayna had ordered him to.

"We get no respect around that joint I tell you. Gunnar, Scarlett, Avery, and Sadie don't get picked on like this." JC let Will open the door for him because his hands were full.

"And here he is the man of the hour, the birthday boy, makin' his Bluebird debut as a contracted artist. My godson Mr. JC Grayson." Deacon announced from the stage. He wore a huge smile on his face. He couldn't have been more proud of him if he were his own son.

JC looked around the bar a little bit confused. There were a few industry bigwigs that he recognized from working various events as a roadie. Watty was holding court over at the bar with his group of friends.

"It looks like you're pretty surprised to me, birthday boy." Maddie walked over and kissed his cheek with a smile on her face. She didn't care one little bit that she felt Colt's grip on her hand tighten when she did that. JC was her best friend and he was just going to have to get used to that.

"I couldn't be more surprised at this point if Johnny Cash himself walked out on that stage. I don't have a whole set list prepared. I just have the few songs that I've been playing while we were on tour." JC replied. He would have had to be blind to miss the look that Colt shot him.

"I hope you don't mind that I invited Colt and a few of my friends from school to hear you play." Maddie smiled at him.

"I don't mind at all, Maddie. The more the merrier. You know that I just wanna get my music out there and have it be heard." JC smiled back. It was as if everyone else in the room ceased to exist, but the two of them.

Will stood behind Maddie and Colt making kissy faces where only JC could see what he was doing. He shook with silent laughter when Kevin grabbed him by the elbow and led him away from the teens.

"I should let you go mingle. I'm sure that Mom and Uncle Bucky have all kind of stuff that they are gonna want you to do tonight. We get to talk all the time. Just if you have a minute for me a little later come over and say hi." Maddie actually blushed.

"I always have time for you, you know that." JC assured her. "Traveling Soldier later?"

"I'm in and I'm sure Daph wouldn't mind playing too." Maddie replied.

"It's a date then." JC grinned goofily.

"Hey, Grayson, happy birthday." Colt finally spoke to him.

"Thanks, Wheeler, like Maddie said I've gotta get going, but I will be back later." JC walked off to find Rayna.

JC opened up his set with Sinners Like Me, Homeboy, and Burn. Those were his three deeply personal songs and he wanted to get those out of the way early in the night.

"Looks more and more like Vince every day doesn't he?"

Deacon and Rayna both turned around when they heard a voice from the past behind them.

"Hey, Ray, Hey Deac, long time no see." A tall slim woman of Native American decent greeted them with a smile.

"Amy, what are you doing here?" Rayna's eyes got wide.

"It's not everyday that my oldest son turns nineteen and gets to play his own showcase at the Bluebird. I played hell scoring tickets for me and my husband, but I managed it." Amy replied.

"Amy, you know if he sees you here he's gonna freak. And rightfully so. You walked off and abandoned him." Deacon went into protective daddy mode.

"Relax, Deac, I'm not here to cause him any trouble. I just wanted to hear him play. He's sounds pretty damn good. It sounds like he had the best guitar player in all of Nashville as his teacher." Amy complimented him.

"Damn it, you make it so fuckin' hard for me to stay mad at you." Deacon hugged her.

"Vince always said the same thing." Amy chuckled.

"Amy, you hurt him once don't hurt him again." Rayna warned her, but she hugged her as well. Once upon a time she had been one of her backup singers and that is how she and Vince had hooked up.

"I have no intentions of hurting him again. He has a good life I'm not going to do anything to mess that up." Amy promised her.

JC just so happened to look out in the crowd and see his biological mother standing there. "Now, I'm supposed to be takin' a short break right 'bout now, but I got one I wanna play for you. I don't play this one a lot in public so I hope ya'll like it."

He signaled for his band to start playing.

" _Amy's got the letters I wrote. My picture in a frame. She's had a year to let go, but she's still wearin' my ring. It hasn't left her finger since the night that I proposed when I promised her forever before I took her home, but I never made it home that night and part of her died too. I've watched her livin' her life and there's nothin' I can do. Sometimes she goes crazy screamin' out my name. Sayin' baby please come save me. I wish she knew that I'd give anythin' to kiss the tears off her face, tell her everything's ok, feel her heart beat next to mine and make up for lost time. Oh, but, God I know I can't, but you can't let her live this way. It's too late for savin' me, but there's still hope for savin' Amy."_

For a moment he was sucked back into time.

" _Do you not love me anymore? Or did I do something wrong? I'm sorry if I made you mad. I promise that I'll be good from now on." JC's tiny seven-year old hand clung to his mother's through the open window in the backseat of his grandparent's truck._

" _Of course I love you, Jimbo. That's why I have to let you go. I love you too much to keep you around in this mess that I've made of my life since I lost your daddy. You deserve better than I can give you right now. I love you, my sweet boy always remember that." Amy jerked her hand away from him and forced herself to step back._

By the time JC made it all the way through the song there wasn't a dry eye in the crowd. Maddie was waiting for him on the side of the stage when he stepped down to take his break.

"I know how hard that song is on you, but you did great." Maddie slipped her hand into his.

"You mind holdin' on to me a little tighter for just a minute? I got somethin' I need to go do and I need you with me." JC asked her.

"If you need me you've got me." She smiled at him. She didn't really care if Colt liked it or not.

They walked over to where Amy stood with her new husband Phil talking to Rayna and Deacon.

"Happy birthday, Jimbo," Amy used Vince's nickname for their son.

"Don't please, just don't." JC took a shuddering breath.

"I just came to wish you a happy birthday and to hear you sing. That song was absolutely incredible. It took a lot of guts for you to get up there and play that. I also wanted to give you these they were Vince's." Amy handed him a set of monogramed cufflinks.

JC took them and put them in his pocket after looking them over. "Thank you, and yeah I just thought if he could say somethin' like that to you he would. I'm glad you seem to be doin' so well now. And I'm doin' great, so you can stop checkin' up on me. It's been twelve years."

"Jim, I'd like for you to meet my husband Phil." Amy introduced the pair.

"Nice to meet you, Jim," Phil extended his hand to him.

"Nice to meet you too," JC shook his hand politely. He could feel the walls closing in around him. "Maddie, can you go tell Will that I need a rescue? He'll know what that means."

"Sure, I'll get him for you." Maddie rubbed his arm soothingly.

"You couldn't deny her if you wanted to could ya, Deac?" Amy asked regarding Maddie.

"Nope, that girl is all Claybourne." Deacon smiled proudly.

"Aunt Ray, Jackson," JC said cryptically.

"What?" Rayna asked him confused.

"Can you tell Bucky that's the name of the album? Jackson." JC worked his lip between his teeth.

Will thankfully walked up with Kevin at that moment. "Maddie said you needed a rescue. Here you go." He handed him a Jack and coke.

"Thanks, Will," JC took a gulp of his drink.

"JC, there's a reporter friend of mine I want you to meet. So I'm gonna borrow you for a minute." Kevin could tell he wanted to get out of there. So he led him off.

"He couldn't get away from me fast enough could he?" Amy mused.

"He's tryin' his best, Amy. Give him some time and don't push him. If you do he's just gonna run the other way." Rayna advised her. Part of her felt for her former friend, but the bigger part of her wanted to protect JC from ever being hurt by her again. "He may not be an addict like Vince was, but still his inclination is to run."

"I know he's always been just like his father and that's why I had to let him go. I was never gonna get better with the constant reminder staring me in the face. I always had every intention of going after him, but he was happy. I had no right to disrupt his life again." Amy admitted.

"He's a good boy that's both in spite of you and because of you. Maybe one day he will be ready to talk, but today isn't that day. He's Vince's son so he may never come around. Vince didn't have the capacity to forgive that I do. For now, you just have to be satisfied with bein' proud of him from afar." Deacon offered some of his words of wisdom.

"You ok?" Maddie found JC leaning up against the wall in the back of the Bluebird taking deep breaths.

"Yeah, I'm fine I just need to get my bearings again. Seein' her is always hard on me, because I turn into that seven-year-old that she walked away from again." JC replied and he let her take his hand.

"I can't even pretend to know what you're goin' through. At least with my dad he didn't know I was his so that's why he was never there. Just know that I'm here if you ever want to talk about it." She offered and hugged him gently. "What did she give you that has you so rattled?"

He pulled out the set of cufflinks that had the initials JVG embossed on them. "Jackson Vincent Grayson Jr. That was his given name." He took a shaky breath. "I just may take you up on that offer." He gave her a weak smile. "I need to get back up on stage. I'll see you in a little while." He kissed the top of her head before he walked away.

"Maddie, what was that?" Colt had caught the exchange as he came out of the bathroom.

"That was me helping out a friend and if you have a problem with that then I don't think you have a place in my life. If you can't trust me then I don't see the point in doing this." She told him bluntly.

"I trust you just fine. It's him I don't trust. I see the way that he looks at you." He replied.

She reached up and kissed him to shut him up. "You have nothing to worry about."

" _Indian summer both of laughin' hackberry trees and fireflies flashin'. So many holes in the soles of our shoes you don't choose life, life chooses you. Floatin' on a raft we built from scrap wood mosquito bite scratchin' felt so good. And I'd never seen eyes your color of blue you don't choose love, love chooses you."_ JC opened up the next part of his set with a song he'd written about his first girlfriend.

" _From here lookin' back twenty years gone my life slipped away like a gulf shore high tide now love's more like a thorn in my side than the wonderland it used to be. I guess that's why these memories shine like sixteenth birthday cake candle lights. And I know it wasn't that perfect, but that's the way I like to remember it."_

" _Big green John Deere forty-eight forty turnin' dirt for most of the mornin'. Radio givin' severe weather warnings you don't choose fate, fate chooses you. I got to your house as the black skies opened we were all alone thunder was rollin' those west Texas flatlands turned into oceans that was the end of our innocence moment. From here lookin' back twenty years gone my life slipped away like a California hillside now love's more like thorn in my side than the wonderland it used to be. I guess that's why these memories shine like sixteenth birthday cake candle light. And I know it wasn't that perfect, but that's the way I like to remember it."_

"Deacon, I don't know what you did to that boy those two weeks you were out on tour, but keep up the good work." Bucky clapped Deacon on the back.

"He's had that in him the whole time he just needed a little help openin' up." Deacon shrugged off the compliment.

" _I let most of the sad times the breakdowns the broken parts fade away. I keep all of the highlights close to my heart and I need them every day. From here lookin' back twenty years gone my life slipped away like a runaway bride and now love's more like a thorn in my side than the fairytale it used to be. I guess that's why these memories shine like sixteenth birthday cake candle light. And I know it wasn't that perfect, but that's the way I like to remember it. Yeah, that's the way I like to remember it."_

"We've got a gold mine with this kid, Ray. Not only is he an actual country artist he can do that beer and truck stuff that everyone is so fond of these days." Bucky commented to Rayna.

"He's something special. I'll give you that." Rayna agreed with him.

JC started up another song this one with a haunting melody. _"He left gravel flyin' tears fallin' from her eyes. When he got home that evenin' he didn't apologize he left a rose on the table. She let that be enough. She loved him enough to know how a cowboy is just how a cowboy loves."_

" _She tried to ride it out, but she couldn't keep hangin' on. Now he sees her around, but she's never alone. He keeps the storm clouds behind a wall of pride. Laughs out loud spits on the ground that's how a cowboy cries that's just how a cowboy cries. Unwritten rules and unspoken words you never show your hand or hang your head no matter how it hurts. Sometimes you get thrown but you get back on and ride. That's how a cowboy lives that's how a cowboy dies."_

" _Now he makes his mistakes and they weigh on his soul. His alter is an open sky a church where no one goes. He knows God understands him because he made him that way. Silently he makes his peace that's how a cowboy prays that's just how a cowboy prays. Sometimes you get thrown but you get back on and ride that's how a cowboy lives that's how a cowboy dies. That's how a cowboy lives."_

"Where did that song come from?" Kevin asked him when he got down off the stage.

"I don't know where it came from. It's kinda the story of my grandparents I guess. Just talkin' to you the other day kinda shook it loose." JC shrugged he didn't know what else to say about that.

"You knocked it outta the park." Kevin smiled at him. The two had grown close because of Will.

"Rayna, I have a favor to ask of you." Juliette approached her boss.

"What do you need?" Rayna wasn't even sure that she wanted to know.

"My lead guitar player needs tomorrow night off and I haven't been able to find a replacement. I was hoping that you would be open to letting me use JC." Juliette broached the subject. She'd shown up at the Bluebird because she and Avery needed the time together.

"You'd have to ask him, but I'm sure that he won't have a problem with it. As a matter of fact he will probably be grateful for the reprieve. He's supposed to be helping Deacon, Will, Avery, Gunnar, and Kevin get his mom and sister moved into their new place. Where's this show at?" Rayna replied.

"It's in Atlanta and it would only be for the one night. I'm in a bind or I wouldn't ask. You've done more than enough for me lately." Juliette was actually being humble for a change.

"Consider it done. I'll just tell he has no choice in the matter and he won't argue about it." Rayna gave her a soft smile.

* * *

"Maddie, the way you're fluttering around this morning being so helpful with your brothers leads me to believe that you want something." Rayna told her daughter the next morning. Maddie was being unusually cheerful and helpful for a change.

"God, mom, you are so suspicious all the time. I can't even help out with my baby brothers now without getting the third degree." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Madison, if you want something from me I suggest you drop the attitude and just tell me what it is." Rayna put her hands on her hips.

"JC is playing lead guitar for Juliette tonight. Well, Will, Kevin, Gunnar, Scarlett, and Avery are taking a road trip down there to watch him. Scarlett said she didn't mind me tagging along as long as it was ok with you and dad. Also I haven't seen Colt that much lately and mom he apologized to you and dad and I really miss him. Can I please go?" Maddie begged.

"Well, I happen to know for a fact that all of your homework is done and it has been done since the first week of the tour. The tutor your father and I hired worked wonders for you and Daphne both. Hmm, your non-existent chores are all caught up. Daphne is havin' a sleepover with a friend. It looks like all your daddy's worker bees are gonna be taking off to Atlanta, so I may actually have my husband to myself for two minutes when our twins aren't screaming their heads off, but I'm sure I can get pawpaw or mawmaw to babysit them and we could have an actual date." Rayna listed off as she pretended to think it over. "You can go, but you mind your cousin."

"Thank you, mom, thank you, so, so, much." Maddie gushed and threw her arms around her mother.

"You're welcome. Just be smart and make good choices. Don't let anyone talk you into anythin' that you're not ready for. It's ok not to be ready and it's ok to say no. That doesn't make you immature or a bad person. It just means you know what you want and you're not afraid to stick to your guns." Rayna gave her a sex talk that was disguised as a pep talk.

"I know, mom, dad covered this with me that time he caught Colt and me together." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"I know that he did, but I'm gonna cover it with you again. I'm your momma and it is my job to make sure that you're safe. You have big plans, Maddie, and you have no idea how a baby can affect that." Rayna wasn't ready for this talk her daughter. It seemed just like yesterday that the doctor had placed her in her arms.

"Oh my God! Mom! Do we really have to do this right now?" Maddie buried her face in her hands.

"This is just as embarrassing for me as it is for you, but I want us to be able to talk about these things. I don't want you to feel that you have to hide it from me. So, if you think that you want to go all the way with Colt or any other boy for that matter let me know. That way we can at least get you on birth control and minimize the risks of an unwanted pregnancy." Rayna's complexion was about the same color as her hair at this point. It was something that had to be said, but that didn't make it any easier on either of them.

"Ok, mom, I get it, I get it. I've been through health class. I really don't want to hear this from my mother who just popped out twins not that long ago. The fact that you're still doing that at your age, just no, mom." Maddie wore a look of pure disgust on her face.

"How do you think you got here?" Rayna asked her.

"I don't want to think about that either." Maddie groaned. "I'm just gonna go get ready. Scarlett should be by to get me any time now." She hurriedly excused herself from the room.

"Well, good mornin' to you too, sunshine." Deacon commented as Maddie almost knocked him over on her way out of the kitchen. "Did I miss some kind of teenage meltdown while I was in the shower?"

"Babe, let's just say that you really don't want to know and leave it at that." Rayna replied. Having that conversation with Maddie was bad enough she didn't want to repeat it for Deacon.

"Well, it looks like I'm hirin' movers to get momma and Bev's stuff into the house. All my workers bailed on me. That means I'm all yours today." He grinned at her.

"I love the sound of that. I was thinkin' since we aren't gonna have Daphne that maybe mawmaw or pawpaw would like to get in some baby boy time with the twins and we can go on a date." She wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I think that can be arranged. Just remember no sex before the honeymoon. We only have two more days to wait." He kissed the tip of her nose.

"I don't know how you're being so strong about this. I'm about to come undone." She buried her face in his chest and groaned.

"Believe me, darlin', this is just as hard on me as it is on you. But, it's gonna be worth it I promise." He took a deep breath.

"I'm gonna hold you to that." She looked up at him.

"I'm gonna hold you against me." He smirked.

* * *

"Ok, I think we've got all the essentials for a proper road trip. We've got music." Gunnar held up an iPod.

"We've got snacks." Scarlett held up a grocery bag.

"We've got drinks covered." Will held up a case of beer and a flask.

"Don't worry, Maddie, we've got you covered too." Kevin held up a case of soda.

"I'm not gonna be very much fun on the way down here. I've got to learn Juliette's songs, so I'm gonna have headphones in my ears for awhile." JC put his headphones in.

"Since Will and Gunnar are the drunks of the group Kevin and I are gonna take turns drivin'." Scarlett volunteered. She knew her uncle would kill them all if they thought about getting behind the wheel if they'd been drinking.

"I'll take the first shift and we can switch when we stop for gas." Kevin got behind the wheel.

"That sounds good to me." Scarlett agreed. She crawled into the backseat next to Gunnar. Rayna had loaned them her old SUV for this road trip.

"Maddie, you're on DJ duty for right now. The minute you play any of that teeny bop bubble gum crap you lose your music rights." Will handed her the iPod.

"You've got it, Will. I've got this handled. JC is the one listening to the teeny bop bubble gum crap right now and he has the decency to keep it confined to his ears only." Maddie laughed.

"Ya'll can kiss my ass if you don't like it. I don't see any of you gettin' asked to play lead guitar for the biggest names in country music." JC flipped them off.

"Oh, God, here we go again. This was the last thing he needed was something to give him a bigger ego." Maddie nudged him with her elbow playfully.

"If you don't like my big ego you can stop callin' me to write songs with you or every time you're havin' problems with your little douche face boyfriend." JC said it in a joking tone, but it wasn't lost on anyone else that he wasn't fond of Colt at all.

"It sounds like someone got a little too drunk at the after party at Gunnar's last night." Kevin laughed as he pulled out onto the road.

"I wasn't even that drunk. Will was that drunk." JC defended.

"I'm always that drunk. Kevin is used to that." Will scoffed.

"Anything is better than you sitting around the house for a month without leaving. I'll take your drunken antics over that any day of the week." Kevin winked at him.

"Huh, this is new Scarlett and I are the only couple that aren't bickering for a change. Kevin and Will just talk to each other that way. Maddie and JC are at each other's throats. And Scarlett and I are bein' normal there is somethin' wrong with this picture." Gunnar and his ability to make any situation awkward was quite comical.

"We are not a couple!" Maddie and JC snapped at the same time.

"Couldn't tell that from the way you two act." Gunnar mumbled under his breath.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys liked it. I threw a little angst in there. There is still a lot to be explored with JC's backstory, but don't worry it's coming soon along with Colt's exit. I'm having Juliette and Avery work on their marriage instead of just writing each other of and some of that will be in the next chapter. And maybe some feelings from someone involved in a certain love triangle will finally come to the surface. Until next time please review.


	47. Chapter 47

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. Also shameless self plug time. If you enjoy this story you should check out This Time Around it's another Deyna pic that rewrites history in a good way.

* * *

Chapter 47

"Deacon, we have a completely child free day. I don't want to know why you insisted on dragging me into the office. This is our time to relax before the boys' baptism tomorrow and you are being so unlike you wanting to work. When we could be at home getting naked together." Rayna complained. She had her feet thrown up on the table in the conference room.

Deacon leaned back in his chair contentedly. "I told you that ain't happenin' that's why we are at the office. I trust us a little more if we have a chaperone."

Emily sat on the other side of the table working on her iPad if she was paying any attention to their conversation she didn't let on.

"Sorry, Emily, you're so quiet and so good at your job I forget that you're in the room sometimes." Rayna blushed.

"I semi work for Juliette Barnes still. Trust me I have heard way worse than that. I consider that tame." Emily reassured her.

"Let's just say that we are the reason that Bucky lost all of his hair and leave it at that." Deacon smirked.

Bucky opened the door just in time to hear that. "Damn right you two are the reason I hardly I have any hair left. Your appointment is here. Tandy says for you to try to act like you're housebroken." He gestured for the young man behind him to walk into the room.

"Deacon, I was pleasantly surprised to get a call from you this morning." Rusty the young man from the car dealership looked around confused.

"Have a seat, you're not in any hot water this is just an informal meeting." Rayna assured him.

"Emily, just has a couple of questions that she wants to ask you and then we will go from there." Deacon smiled to put him at ease.

Rusty took a seat. "I'm an open book."

"What's your full name?" Emily asked him.

"Robert Curtis Marshal, but since before I can remember everyone has always called me Rusty." Rusty answered.

"Where did you go to college?" Emily went on.

"University of Tennessee. I majored in business administration." Rusty cracked his knuckles.

"What are your childcare skills like?" Emily asked him a pretty important question.

"I have five nieces and nephews. My childcare skills are pretty damn good. I'm certified in infant and toddler CPR and I used to lifeguard. I'm pretty great with kids." Rusty thought it was an odd question, but he answered it anyway.

"If I run a background check on you is it going to turn up anything questionable?" Emily arched her eyebrow.

"If you run a background check on me you'll find out that I have a couple of speeding tickets and that's about it. I've never been in any kind of trouble with the law." Rusty replied.

"Let's say that everythin' you said just checks out. How would you feel about comin' to work for me as my personal assistant slash manager?" Deacon asked him. He'd taken an instant liking to the kid and he thought that they would work well together.

"I say that I'm all yours." Rusty grinned. He couldn't believe that he was getting the chance to work for his idol.

"Well, we are going out on a big tour in a couple of weeks, but until then we will be out of touch. Emily will get you up to speed on everything that you need to know pending the results of the background check the job is yours." Rayna told him. She was just glad to finally have someone to handle Deacon's stuff for him.

* * *

"I've never been so glad to get out of a car in my entire life." JC stepped out the SUV and stretched his long limbs out. They had finally made it to Atlanta.

"I second that motion." Maddie grabbed her duffle bag out of the back of the car. She needed a change of clothes and a shower after being in the car for that long.

"This is how it's gonna go. Maddie, we are gonna drop you and JC off here at the hotel. You can spend some time with Colt and get ready. JC needs to get with Juliette and go over her set list for the night. Gunnar, Will, Kevin, and I are gonna explore the city a little bit, but we will meet you at the venue. I'm beggin' you not to do anythin' crazy that'll get us both in trouble with your momma and daddy." Scarlett pleaded with her cousin.

"It's not like we are gonna be alone in a hotel room together. Luke will be there the whole time. There is no chance of anything happening." Maddie rolled her eyes. She'd already suffered through her mother's lame version of the sex talk she didn't need one from her cousin too.

"I know that and I wasn't referrin' to that. I was more talkin' 'bout the fact that you two seem to enjoy gettin' really drunk together. If I take you home drunk your daddy will skin me alive." Scarlett corrected her.

"I promise that I won't do anything to get you in trouble, Scarlett. You've covered for me more than enough times as it is." Maddie swore to her.

"Alright, then we are gonna let you two go on up and get settled in and we will see you later." Gunnar ushered them off. It didn't escape anyone's notice that JC carried Maddie's bag into the hotel for her or that they walked in linked arm in arm.

"Twenty bucks says she goes all the way with Colt and that's how she realizes she has it bad for JC." Will wagered.

"Forty says she almost goes all the way with him, but can't do it because JC is her Deacon for lack of a better term." Gunnar countered.

"I got fifty says that she already knows how she feels about him and she breaks up with Colt." Kevin threw in.

"That is my baby cousin, ya'll. I am shocked and appalled at your behavior." Scarlett scolded them. "That bein' said, I've got a hundred that says she knows how she feels about JC, but she still does somethin' with Colt to prove to herself that he's what she really wants."

"We are horrible people. Come on, let's go do some exploring before we have to meet up with them." Gunnar shook his head.

* * *

"JC, come on in. You're here a little earlier than we expected and that's a good thing. Juliette is just sitting around relaxing. I'm sure she will be happy that you're here to go over the set list early." Avery greeted JC when he knocked on the hotel room door.

"I just wanted to make a good impression. Until you've had your ass reamed by Rayna Jaymes for not bein' on time you take things like that seriously." JC replied.

"With the exception of Avery Rayna has reamed everyone in this room a new asshole at one point or another. You're not a true country musician until the Queen of Country has had your ass for somethin'." Juliette smiled at him she was dressed in a t-shirt and a pair of yoga pants.

"I thought I would come by early and go over your set list with you. I've been listening to your songs since last night to be prepared." JC assured her that she had been right to put her faith in him.

"JC, I asked for you by name. I've heard you play and I also know that you can play by ear. I'm not worried that you're not gonna do a good job. I also called in another favor from Rayna and this one I think you're gonna like." She grinned at him.

"What is it?" JC asked.

"That is a surprise for later, my friend. Until then just feel free to make yourself at home or visit with Cadence. From what Avery tells me she is very fond of you." She replied. Therapy seemed to be working wonders for her she was even a little nicer than normal. She still had a long way to go, but this was a vast improvement over the way she'd been a few weeks ago.

"Yeah, me and little Cadence are buddies." JC agreed.

"I figure that we will head down in a couple of hours for sound check. So if you wanna grab a shower and change clothes you're more than welcome to." She told him.

"I thought Maddie came down here with ya'll." Juliette broached the subject. Even she could see the chemistry between the two young people.

"She's with Colt in Luke's suite getting ready. I guess that I will see her down at the venue. Not like we can avoid each other forever we did ride here together." JC chuckled.

* * *

"I don't see why you can't just spend the night. We hardly get to see each other anymore." Colt complained to Maddie.

"It's like my mom thinks if we are alone together for more than five minutes we are gonna have sex or something." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Can't say that I haven't thought about it." He retorted.

"I've thought about it too, but after my dad almost killed you. I'm thinking that it's not the best idea right now." she laughed dryly.

"I don't want you to feel pressured, but you know all of our friends have and we have been together longer than them. I just don't want us to be the only ones who haven't you know?" He wasn't sure if he was making himself clear.

"I understand what you're saying, Colt. I just don't know that I'm ready. I don't want that to be something that I do just because everyone else is doing it. I want it to be something that we do because it feels like the right time for both of us." She reasoned with him. She opened the bedroom door and walked out wearing a stunning blue dress.

"Maddie, you look, wow," His jaw hung open and his eyes were wide.

"Thanks," she looked down and blushed.

"We better go meet my dad before he comes looking for us." He offered her his arm and she took it.

When JC saw Maddie backstage just before the show his eyes lit up and a goofy grin came to his face. "Cricket, I don't even know what to say. Words fail me. There is no way that my best friend and the gorgeous woman standing in front of me right now are the same person." He tripped over his words a little bit.

Maddie felt herself melt inside when he referred to her as Cricket. It was a name that held special meaning between just the two of them. Not even Colt had bothered to come up with a nickname for her beyond babe or baby. "There's no way that the handsome cowboy I'm looking at is my best friend. You cleaned up entirely too well." She joked to hide the blush on her cheeks.

"Maybe you ought not stand on the side of the stage like usual. I don't want to get distracted by your beauty and lose my place." He joked back.

Juliette and Scarlett both walked up in time to catch the exchange.

Scarlett grabbed her cousin by her shoulders.

"Girl emergency, my dressing room now." Juliette took control of the situation.

Kevin, Will, Avery, and Gunnar were chilling out in Juliette's dressing room.

"Boys, out now. We have girly things to talk about and I know that none of you want to be here for that." Scarlett laid down the law.

That was all it too to get the four men to clear out.

"What's going on?" Maddie asked a confused look on her face.

"We were hopin' that you could tell us that. Sweetie, the way that you look at JC is not how you look at a friend it's how you look at someone that you're in love with. Trust me I know." Scarlett replied.

"There's nothing going on between JC and me. I don't know how many times I'm gonna have to tell people that." Maddie groaned. "I just feel so confused inside and I don't know what to do about it."

"Confused about what?" Juliette asked her.

"Colt is ready to go all the way. All of our friends have done it already and he doesn't want us to be the only ones who haven't. I don't want that to be the reason that we have sex. I can't say any of this to my mom because she tells my dad everything and he wants Colt dead anyway." Maddie sighed.

"What I can tell you is when the time is right for you, you will know. Until then don't let anyone pressure you or make you feel like you're lettin' them down if you're not ready for that step." Scarlett told.

"I guess that man wisdom thing Deacon has really is hereditary." Juliette quipped. "Sometimes the best way to figure out what you want is to take control of things. And I know just the way for you to do that." She singled for her makeup team to start working on Maddie.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please help me welcome to the stage a very special friend of mine who is talented beyond her years. Ms. Maddie Claybourne." Juliette announced in the middle of her set. She had gotten Rayna's permission for this before she'd done it.

Maddie got up on stage and the two of them sang Telescope together.

"Now, don't you try to go anywhere on me just yet, Maddie. I need you for another song." Juliette put her arm around Maddie's shoulders. "Let's give a warm welcome to Mr. JC Grayson on lead guitar and my husband Mr. Avery Barkley. We had to get permission from my boss for this one, but I think ya'll know the words."

JC and Avery launched into Something Bad. The crowd went wild for the song. At one point JC and Maddie stood back to back while he played the guitar solo.

"Maddie, that was incredible." Colt pulled her into a hug when she came off the stage.

"Thanks, babe." Maddie grinned at him.

"Say, JC, Avery, ya'll wouldn't happen to know the words to It's On Tonight would ya?" Luke asked.

"I can play anythin' in the Deacon Claybourne catalog." JC boasted.

"I know the words." Avery agreed.

"Great, and, JC, if you don't mind I'd be honored if you'd let me do Sinners Like Me with ya." Luke added.

"Yeah, we can do that." JC agreed after looking at Will for approval. That was his best friend and he didn't want to hurt him by becoming chummy with the man who had kicked him off his tour for no reason.

* * *

Colt grabbed a bottle of scotch from the craft services table and hid it underneath his jacket. He found a back hallway where he could be alone and he drank deeply from the bottle. He was bored of trying to impress his dad's investors and things with Maddie couldn't be going worse if they tried. He had her alone on a tour bus ready to go all the way and she had stopped him before it could get that far. He just didn't get her sometimes. He took a few more pulls off the bottle for good measure.

"Colt, there you are, I've been looking all over for you." Maddie looked at him concerned when she found him with a bottle of alcohol in his hand.

"I don't know why you're looking for me. We both know that you rather be off fucking Grayson. I mean that's why you wouldn't go all the way with me isn't it? Because I'm not him?" He spit out and took another drink.

"Colt, that's not true at all." She denied even though she knew it was true. She had thought she was ready to go all the way with him and she would have the only problem was he wasn't JC. In that moment as he hovered above her naked about to enter her for the first time she realized that no matter how many times she tried to deny it she did like JC that way. If she were brutally honest she liked JC the same way her mom liked her dad. She didn't tell Colt that though. She didn't want to hurt his ego anymore than she already had.

"Cut the bullshit, Maddie. I've seen the way you two look at each other. You eye fuck each other like there is no one else around." He took another deep drink from the bottle in his hand.

"No, I told you that I wasn't ready and you still pushed. I'm sorry that I couldn't do and be what you needed me to be. Maybe it's just better if we end things here and now. We only end up getting each other into trouble anyway. As the children of famous parents we get each other on that level, but other than that we don't have anything in common." She could see now what her dad had been talking about. There were other boys out there that would want her for her and not just because of who she was.

"I don't get you at all. I could give you anything that you wanted, but you seem so damn enamored with that dirt poor Texan that you don't know which way is up." He took another gulp to dull the pain.

"That's the thing, Colt. I don't need you to give me the world I can get what I want on my own without feeling like I owe my success to anyone. You seem to forget that I come from money too and not just new money like you. I come from old money I am part Wyatt after all." That was the first time she'd thrown her grandfather's last name around like that, but it felt good.

"You're just like your mother you both rather go for the dirt poor guitar players than give a decent guy the time of day." His words were bolstered by the liquid courage he had imbibed.

"What did you just say?" Fury flashed behind her eyes as the temper she inherited from Deacon came out to play.

"I said you're nothing more than a whore and a tease like your mother. She had my dad and what did she do? She went skipping off into the sunset with your drunk of a father. Of that was after he managed to knock her up yet again while she was still with my dad. She does have a history of lying about her children's fathers so dad might want to demand a DNA test." He didn't mean it, but he said because he knew it was the best way to hurt her.

Maddie smacked him as hard as she could across the face. "We are over! Don't you ever talk about my mom and dad again! And you leave my baby brothers out of this. We're Claybourne's nobody messes with us, but us."

Colt moved towards her only to find himself pushed up against the wall by his throat.

"Boy, if you put a hand on her that would be the biggest mistake you ever made in your pathetic life. You're nothin' more than a spoiled little rich boy poutin' because he didn't get his way. When a lady says no she means no. You take that answer like a southern gentleman and you demure to her wishes gracefully." The vein in JC's neck bulged out and his nostrils flared. It took every ounce of self control in him not to knock that little twerp's lights out.

"Oh, yeah, she's getting a real southern gentleman when she gets you. If she's lucky she'll get a couple of good years with you before you turn into a drunk and wrap your car around a tree just like your daddy." Colt was just egging him on.

JC reared back his fist. "Don' talk about my daddy."

"You can't handle the truth? That he was a drunk? And the only good thing was he didn't anyone else with him the night he killed himself?" Colt just kept going.

JC's knuckles turned white because the fist he made was so tight. One well placed punch and Colt would come to in a different time zone.

Maddie put her hand on JC's elbow. "JC, don't he's not worth it. You don't want to get kicked out of the army." She tried to reason with him.

"What the hell is goin' on back here?" Will came around the corner. "JC, let him go, man. I don't wanna visit you in prison every week because you beat the shit out of a minor. He's seventeen, you're nineteen. You'd be the one to get in trouble no matter what it was he said to you."

"You didn't hear what he said about my daddy, Will." JC didn't lower his fist.

Maddie put his hand on his shoulder. She had no reason to be afraid of his temper. All he'd ever done was try to protect her. "Jimmy, please don't do this. For me don't do it. It doesn't matter what he thinks about our fathers at least we both know that they love us. We don't have to hang on to try to catch any little crumb of affection they throw our way." She spoke to him softly.

JC let go of Colt and lowered his fist. It was just something about the way his name sounded when it left her mouth that soothed him. "You're lucky that she cares enough to have just saved you from an ass whoopin'." He straightened his clothes and slipped his arm around Maddie's shoulders. "Come on, Cricket, let's go grab my gear so we can get on home." He could feel her trembling underneath his touch, not because she was scared of him, but because she was trying to hold back tears. "Not in front of him. Don't give that little son of a bitch the satisfaction of knowing he made you cry." He whispered in her ear.

"Come on you two hooligans. We gotta get back on the road. Rayna will never forgive us if we show up tired and hungover to the twins' baptism. Especially me and Gunnar since we are the godfathers." Will guided them both away quickly while the situation was still in hand.

* * *

"Deacon, she's still holed up in the music room and we need to leave in another three hours. Maddie takes as long as I do to get ready." Rayna looked over at her husband worriedly as they watched their daughter just sitting in the music room staring off into space.

"I don't know what to do, Ray. Normally she talks to me, but that ain't workin' today." Deacon shrugged his shoulders helplessly.

"What exactly happened last night?" Rayna questioned.

"All Scarlett said was that she broke up with Colt last night and she doesn't know much more than that." Deacon replied.

"I betcha I know who can get through to her. That cowboy that's passed out on our couch right now because he didn't want to leave his best friend alone last night." Rayna pointed with her eyes at JC.

"Well, I suppose we better go get that boy up." Deacon was willing to do anything that would help his little girl.

JC heard his name mentioned and he was up in a flash. "Let me go see what I can do to help her. The first one always hurts the worst. So, if you'll excuse me I gotta friend to take care of." He made his way into the music room. He picked up one of Deacon's guitars.

"JC, no offense, but I don't really wanna talk. I don't even wanna leave the house." Maddie told him when he sat down next to her.

"Good thing I don't wanna talk then. You gotta leave the house don't let that little bastard ruin your beloved baby brothers' baptism for you." JC started picking out a tune on the guitar. "He made the biggest mistake in his life when he fucked with you. You're a song writer you can go all Taylor Swift on his ass." he grinned.

" _I stood in the street in the pourin' rain. Didn't give a damn about anythin' I said take me oh lord just take me. Went back in the house picked up this guitar. Somehow my fingers found the way to my heart and it saved me oh lord it saved me. Well, I'm not proud of my mistakes, but thanks to you I've got so much to say."_ He started singing. "Come on, Cricket, you know the words to the chorus don't make me sing it alone."

" _Cause the best songs come from broken hearts, from busted dreams, and beat up guitars. It's times like these when I'm down on my knees it's true. Yeah you gotta dig deep within the well of your soul to find the will to sing the words that only you know about going through hell and willing to tell the truth. Oh, but the best songs come from broken hearts."_ He sang alone because Maddie refused to budge.

" _I fell for a dream it was not what it seemed by the time I woke up I had lost everythin'. Thought I would die without you, but I came to life without you. Yeah, cause God has a way of workin' things out. If not for the music where would I be now? I'm gonna write about you. You bet I'm gonna write about you. Despite the obvious mistake thanks to you now I've got so much to say."_

He looked at her and stuck his bottom lip out. "Come on, Maddie, you're ruinin' my street cred. I ain't supposed to be singin' Rayna Jaymes' songs alone."

" _Cause the best songs come from broken hearts, busted dreams, and beat up guitars. It's times like these when I'm down on my knees it's true. You've gotta dig deep within the well of your soul to find the will to sing the words that only you know about going through hell and willing to tell the truth. Oh, but the best songs come from broken hearts."_ Maddie joined him this time.

" _Yeah, you gotta dig deep within the well of your soul to find the will to sing the words that only you know about going through hell and willing to tell the truth. Yeah, I'm willing to tell the truth. Cause the best songs come from, the best songs come from the best songs come from broken hearts. Yeah, broken hearts."_ They finished the song together.

"Feel a little bit better now?" He asked.

"Yeah, a little." She gave him a small smile. "You're the only guy besides my daddy, my baby brothers, and my unofficial big brothers that I can count on not to let me down." She leaned her head on his shoulder.

"Well, between you and me it's better if your daddy never finds out what douche face said last night." He leaned his head against hers.

"Can we write a song about the dick later?" She asked him.

"Hell yeah, we can write a song about that dick later." He promised her. Through neither one of them knew it at the time that was the moment their dynamic shifted from just friends to the romantic feelings that had been bubbling beneath the surface.

"Very well done, Jimmy. I didn't think we were gonna be able to get her out of there to get her to the church on time." Deacon clapped him on the back.

"She just needed her best friend." JC shrugged.

"I wasn't aware that you could cover my song catalog as well as Deacon's." Rayna teased him.

"It's not somethin' I'm proud of I don't play to mom's and minivans." JC joked.

"You watch yourself, little boy. You need to go get ready." Rayna told him.

"Oh, I'm invited?" JC asked.

"JC, you're like their big brother of course you're invited to the church. We wouldn't have it any other way. Whether you like it or not you're family get used to it." Deacon told him. Seeing the way that he and Maddie were together they were officially going to be family one day.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I thought I put you through enough torture with a certain love triangle so that's over now. But I can't just have Maddie and JC jump into something together. I think you'll like the way that it plays out. Until next time please review.


	48. Chapter 48

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is I Don't Dance by Lee Brice.

* * *

Chapter 48

Deacon and Rayna stood at the front of the church each of them holding one of the twins. Thankfully this was supposed to be a short ceremony, because they didn't know how long the boys would behave.

"Now I ask that the godparents step up and present themselves before God." The pastor spoke.

Will, Sadie, Gunnar, and Scarlett all stepped forward. Deacon and Rayna had decided that they wanted those four to act as the twins' godparents. Will for his courage, Sadie for her strength, Gunnar for his kind heart, and Scarlett for her strong character.

"Will the godparents now state their names?" The pastor asked.

"William Ranger Lexington," Will spoke.

"Sadie Elizabeth Stone," Sadie went next.

"Gunnar Adam Scott," Gunnar gave his name.

"Scarlett June O'Connor," Scarlett went last.

"Now, if the parents will pass the children to the godparents." The pastor instructed.

Will and Sadie stood next to each other in the front of the church. Will had Little Deacon in his arms. Next to them stood Gunnar and Scarlett. Gunnar held Jaymes close to his chest.

The pastor approached Will and took Little Deacon from him. "William and Sadie, do you promise to renounce Satan and all his works? And to help this child be raised in the way, the truth, and the light, of Christ Almighty?"

"We do," Will and Sadie answered at the same time.

The pastor walked over to the baptismal font with Little Deacon. He sprinkled a few drops of holy water on his head. "Deacon John Claybourne Jr. I baptize you in the name of the father, the son, and the holy ghost." He handed him back to Will.

Now he took Jaymes from Gunnar. "Gunnar and Scarlett, do you promise to renounce Satan and all of his works? And to help this child be raised in the way, the truth, and the light of Christ Almighty?" he repeated the question.

"We do," Gunnar and Scarlett answered.

The pastor again sprinkled water on Jaymes' forehead. "Jaymes Wyatt Claybourne, I baptize you in the name of the father, the son, and the holy ghost."

"Daddy, knows that you want to get out of that little suit and tie as much as he wants to get out of his. Not too much longer. We just need to take a few more pictures to make your momma happy." Deacon bounced Little Deacon in his arms gently.

"I've said it once and I will say it again. That is totally your son. Look at how content Jayme is." Rayna bumped her hip playfully against his.

"Will, Sadie, come take a picture with your godson before he has a complete meltdown." Deacon called out. He was as ready to have this over with as his infant son was. He'd only agreed to go along with this to appease Rayna and his mother. He didn't do church unless he absolutely had to. He and God had made their peace with each other long ago and they were both ok with it.

"Come see Uncle Will," Will scooped Little Deacon up in his arms. "We are just gonna have to get you a little cowboy hat and flannel shirt that way your father and godfather are both represented. You don't like this suit and tie stuff."

"Only if we get him a pair of scuffed up cowboy boots and then the look is complete." Sadie teased.

"Little Sister, just because we are outside a church doesn't mean I won't say things that I shouldn't say in mixed company." Deacon warned her playfully.

"June, you better come save your son from the fires of hell because he is about to say something that he shouldn't." Rayna called out to her mother-in-law.

"Deacon John Claybourne, you better act like you were raised to behave well in God's house." June scolded her son.

"That was a dirty trick, babe, and you are so payin' for that later in ways that you don't even wanna imagine." Deacon winked at her. They were about to break their two months of no sex and all bets were off. They may not even make it to the plane tonight without being all over each other.

* * *

After what seemed like forever Rayna and Deacon got everyone cleared out of their house and their grabbed their bags to head to the airport. Shipping the kids off to Tandy for a week had been hard on them both and they'd had to tell her and Bucky to just take the babies and walk away or they weren't going to be able to let them go.

Four hours later after going through customs they were in a little beach side bungalow in Cabo. Admittedly it was much nicer than the one they had stayed in on their first trip to Mexico, but that would be a memory that they always cherished.

The bellhop was barely out the door before they started shedding clothes. Deacon pulled Rayna's shirt over her head and unhooked her bra using one hand. He took each of her nipples into his mouth and lavished them with his tongue before he kissed his way down her stomach. He unzipped her skirt and let it pool around her ankles. He took the edge of her panties between his teeth and took his time sliding them down her long, creamy legs.

He kissed up one of her thighs and then the other his tongue and lips tracing a path of slow torture as they went everywhere, but where she wanted them to go. Once he was satisfied that he had punished her enough he pinned her up against the wall and threw both of her legs over his shoulders. His tongue traced a hot path from her clit to her entrance and back. Maybe he wasn't quite finished punishing her after all. He used the tip of his tongue to slowly flick back and forth across her clit. When he felt that she was close to coming he stopped and buried his tongue inside her pumping it in and out slowly.

Rayna grabbed two fistfuls of his hair as she hung on for dear life. Her mouth was open in a silent scream as he worked his magic on her with his talented tongue. "OH! FUCK! Jesus, Deacon!" She finally cried out when she found her voice. That man's tongue was talented at more than just singing as he'd proved to her on more than one occasion.

He smirked against her hot skin and pressed a teasing kiss to her clit. "If you wanna come, baby, you gotta beg for it." His tongue circled around her entrance without ever entering her. He knew that he was going to pay for this later, but in this moment it was totally worth it.

"Please, babe, it's been so damn long. All it'll take is one more touch from you and I'll be there." She begged him even though she hated to beg anyone for anything.

He took her clit into his mouth and sucked it while swirling his tongue around. That was literally all it took. Her thighs clamped around his ears and her body trembled against his. He carried her over to the bed and laid her down before he stripped out of all of his clothes a satisfied smirk on his face.

He crawled on top of her, but she pushed him over on his back. "My turn," She grinned. She kissed across his jawline and down his collarbone. She swirled her tongue around his nipples before she kissed her way down his chest to his stomach. When she came to the puckered scar on his abdomen from his surgery she licked and sucked on it before licked her way down to his pubic bone.

Just as he had done to her she kissed both of his inner thighs and traced her tongue around every spot, but where he needed to feel it. Satisfied that she'd gotten enough payback she took one of his balls into her mouth and sucked on it before repeating the process with the other. Finally, she took the head of his throbbing cock into her mouth and sucked on it hard. She licked all around the head like it was an ice cream cone before taking the whole thing into her mouth. She deep throated him expertly. She reached down and used her finger to tease her clit.

Her soft moans traveled from her vocal chords straight to his dick sending a shiver down his spine. She worked him over with her throat muscles for a good five minutes before his body stiffened and he shot his hot load down her throat.

She had to swallow quickly because he had come so hard to keep it from escaping her mouth. Once she was sure that he was finished she climbed on top of him and kissed him. Their tongues dueled for dominance each of them able to taste themselves on the other. He ran his hands up and down her body pausing to cup her ass and give it a gentle squeeze.

She reached her hand down between them to stroke his semi hard cock. She brought him fully back to life in no time. She put one of her legs on each side of his hips and sank down on to him slowly. She rocked back and forth on his huge member making sure that her clit rubbed against his pubic bone on every forward thrust. She knew that he could go for hours like this as long as she wasn't lifting herself up and down and him. Now she was paying him back for all the teasing he had done while they were banned from having sex.

He quickly grew wise to her ways and flipped them over so that he was on top of her now. He'd be damned he was just going to let her use him like some sex toy to get herself off and leave him hanging. He pushed her knees up to her chest and started to drill in and out of her pussy like a steam engine. He reached in between them and rubbed her clit with the pad of his thumb. With as long as they had gone without sex there was no way he was going to last long even though he'd just came.

It was like fireworks exploded around them as they came together her crying out his name and him sucking on her neck hard enough to leave a hickey. They collapsed into a heap in each other's arms his member still buried inside her.

"Oh my God, Deacon, that was." Rayna panted out.

"I don't think there are words for what that was, Ray." Deacon was breathing heavily. That was only round one. Knowing the two of them they still had two or three good rounds left in them before they were done for the night.

"I think you've gotten better at that since the last time." She teased him.

"Either that or we both just went a really long time without sex. There is a kitchen counter in here that I fully plan on bendin' you over later just so you know." He retorted.

"Honey, you can bend me over and fuck me anytime I ain't gonna argue with that with as good as it feels." She twisted his nipple.

"Are you tryin' to go for round two already?" He chuckled.

"Well, someone is still hard and still in me, so I don't see where that would be a problem." She rocked her hips against his gently.

"I ain't got a problem with that either." He let her set the pace this time. Instead of fucking they made slow gentle love. He kissed every inch of her body he could get to and she did the same to him. There were whispered I love yous and stolen kisses. They clung to each other tightly as they tipped over the edge of climax together.

Rayna lay there stroking his back gently. "You know you're the only man who has never failed to get me there."

"Really?" Deacon asked his chest puffed out with pride.

"Really, babe, you're basically the one who taught me everything that I know about sex. You discovered my likes and dislikes long before anyone else came along. All those other guys were always in competition with you and not one of them measured up." She purred in his ear. She knew that she didn't have to stroke his ego, but sometimes she felt like reminding him how much of a man he was.

"I'm sure no one else ever figured out what would happen if he kissed you here." He kissed the spot behind her ear and she let out a soft moan. "Or if he did this." He sucked on the junction between her neck and her collarbone. "Or how much you like this." He pushed two fingers inside her and curled them just the way he knew she liked. "Or if he did this at the same time." He took turns sucking on her nipples while he fingered her. "And I'm sure he didn't know how hard this would make you come." He bit down on her nipple and ran his thumb across her clit at the same time. He smirked when he felt her inner walls clamp down around his fingers.

"No, Cowboy, only you know what those spots do to me." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him hard.

* * *

It had taken him all week, but on their last night in Mexico Deacon managed to find the little cantina that they had visited on their first trip down there. He was amazed that the place was still standing truthfully it had looked like it needed to be condemned when they were there over twenty years before, but they served the best food that either of them had ever had.

Rayna reached across the table and touched Deacon's reddened cheek gingerly. "Does that hurt?" She asked concerned.

"Not really, but it doesn't feel very damn good either." Deacon bitched. He had raccoon eyes from where he'd been wearing sunglasses.

"I told you to take more sunblock if you were going to spend all damn day out on that fishing boat. But Deacon Claybourne never listens to his wife because she might be right about something and then he would have to admit that to her." She sipped her margarita.

"You're just damn lucky that I came back. I could have that boat take me all the way to Hawaii to escape your ass. You're so damn mean to me when you want to be." He took a drink of his soda. He hadn't even ventured drinking the water that would probably be worse for him than if he by some accident ingested a little tequila.

"You're just gonna have to get used to the fact that you're never gonna be able to get rid of me." She smirked at him.

"I wouldn't get on a boat and just take off. I would get my boys and my dog first there is no way I would leave them on your mercy." He smirked right back at her and then he leaned across the table to kiss her.

"You're so damn lucky that I love you or I would have killed you by now. It's a good thing that we are gonna have our offspring on that bus with us this summer or it's very possible that we will kill each other. Either that or I will throw you off our bus and make you go bunk up with JC and Will." She threatened him playfully.

"You wouldn't dare. You'd just make the bus driver stop in the middle of the night and drag me back on to our bus so I could hold you and keep you warm. Because it doesn't matter what the temperature is out the minute you crawl into bed with me your feet and ass are freezin'." He rubbed his nose against hers.

"If that is how you feel I can keep my cold ass and my cold feet on my side of the bed with a wall of pillows between us." She countered.

"I ain't gotta worry 'bout that either. I just wake up curled up into a ball freezin' to death because you pulled all the covers off of me in the middle of the night and you can't deny that." He gave her a look that dared her to argue with him.

"You said it yourself, babe, it doesn't matter what the temperature is I get cold at night and that's why I need you to hold me in your arms. You're always so warm. Please don't be a jackass and make me kick you off our bus." She made it sound like he was being unfair to her when she was the difficult one most of the time.

"I wouldn't want to put my poor little diva out, now would I?" He asked sarcastically. To an outsider it would sound like they were fighting, but in reality that's just how they talked to each other. They had a very playful relationship.

They had a nice dinner and they even got cute and fed each other food off of their own plates. They were really enough to make a person gag sometimes. At his insistence that she stop worrying about her figure because he loved her just the way she was they split a dessert. He made no comment at all when she ate most of it. He knew better than that.

"Hey, baby, sit right here a minute and I will be right back ok?" He said after they had finished dessert.

"I will be right here waiting for you, lover." She winked at him. It wasn't long before she heard the strumming of a guitar. And she'd be damned if it didn't sound familiar to her. She'd know the sound of his guitar playing anywhere. She'd be able to pick it out of a lineup blindfolded because of how long they'd played together. She turned to the stage to see him up there with a smile on his face.

"I'd like to dedicate this one to my beautiful bride for puttin' up with my stupid ass for years and helpin' me become a better man." He blew her a kiss and started strumming his guitar again.

" _I'll never settle down that's what I always thought. I was that kind of man just ask anyone. I don't dance, but here I am spinnin' you round and round in circles. It ain't my style, but I don't care. I'd do anythin' with you anywhere. Guess you got me in the palm of your hand cause I don't dance."_ He winked at her when he caught her eye. He had set this all up earlier in the day before he'd gone out on his fishing trip.

" _Love's never come my way I've never been this far. But you took these two left feet and waltzed away with my heart. No, I don't dance, but here I am spinnin' you round and round in circles. It ain't my style, but I don't care. I'd do anythin' with you anywhere. Guess you got me in the palm of your hand girl cause I don't dance."_

Rayna looked up at him with nothing, but love in her eyes. He'd come so far from the boy she'd first met to the man he was now and she was so glad she'd gotten to be there every step of the way even for the bad stuff. That was what made these good times that much better.

" _No, no I don't dance. I don't dance, but here I am spinnin' you round and round in circles. It ain't my style, but I don't care. Well, I'd do anythin' with you anywhere. No, I don't dance, but here I am spinnin you round and around in circles. It ain't my style, but I care. I'd do anythin' with you anywhere. Yeah, you got me in the palm of your hand girl cause I don't dance. Mmm, no, ohhh."_ He sang that last line soulfully to her. They both knew that he was a slave to her every whim and he loved every minute of it.

She wrapped her arms around his neck when he got off the stage and there were tears in her eyes. "I love you so much for everythin' that you have always been to be, for everythin' that you've ever done for me that I knew you didn't want to do, but did it anyway."

"Ray, when are you gonna figure it out? It doesn't matter to me what we're doin' as long as I'm with you? I happily suffer through those chick flicks marathons with you and our girls because that's right where I wanna be. And that's right where I will be for the rest of my life. I don't care if I never see another movie I like ever again as long as I have my girls, my outlaw, and my rebel with me." He kissed her tenderly.

"Now, that, that was damn perfect, you are perfect, Deacon John." She drawled out his name softly.

"As perfect as this week with you has been I miss my four babies somethin' terrible and I can't wait to get home to them." He admitted.

"I feel the same way, babe." She kissed him just for the hell of it.

* * *

Rayna and Deacon snuck into the house quietly the morning they returned from their honeymoon. They didn't want to wake anyone up and those boys both slept lightly. They'd had Tandy bring the kids home the night before so they would be there when they woke up.

"Well, if you two don't both look sun kissed, well rested, and well fucked I don't know who does." Tandy teased them. She was in the kitchen making coffee.

Deacon blushed and buried his face in his hands.

"Tandy, what have I told you? We save the sex talk for when my husband isn't in the room and can't hear that I think he fucks like he's twenty-five." Rayna couldn't help herself he was just so damn cute and boyish looking when he blushed that it melted her.

"Do you two foul women kiss my children with those mouths?" Deacon looked between the two of them and they just laughed at him.

"Thank God, I just walked down here and I didn't hear how that conversation started." Bucky walked into the kitchen looking a little sleep deprived.

"What's the matter, Buck? It looks like you haven't been sleeping well." Rayna bit her lip to hide a smirk.

"I haven't Deac and Jayme both wake up every two to three hours like clockwork and someone I know refuses to get up in the middle of the night and help with her nephews. One of them likes to be cradled while he eats and the other likes to be laid out across your legs. One of them likes to be rocked and the other one likes to be sang to. Neither of them appreciate my rendition of any Elvis song ever recorded. They both like their baths, but one of them doesn't like to be naked once he's out of the water and the other one doesn't mind it so much. And everyone thinks it's funny to make Uncle Bucky burp Jayme and get spit up on like a volcano." Bucky ran through his list of complaints. Not that he really minded since Tandy wasn't treating him like her dirty little secret anymore.

"Ray, we really don't pay him enough." Deacon laughed.

"I know we made him lose most of his hair and our children are going to make him lose the rest of it." Rayna agreed with him. "Uh, how did you explain his presence to my two very curious daughters?" She directed the question at her sister.

"You need to relax the girls know that Uncle Bucky is Aunt Tandy's boyfriend. Therefore you don't have to give him a raise for doing his uncle duties. Daphne thinks it's the coolest thing in the world and Maddie just rolled her eyes. I think she's taking this break up with Colt pretty hard not that it's kept her from spending a lot of time with a certain cowboy who goes by the initials JC." Tandy poured everyone a cup of coffee.

"Tandy, don't you start she needs time to heal before you go playing matchmaker. She doesn't need to be like me and jump from one relationship into another." Rayna warned her.

"I'm not the only one who needs to be warned about that. Will, Kevin, Scarlett, Gunnar, June, Beverly, and Sadie all agree with me that those two are perfect for each other. Bucky is the only one I can't get to budge and that's because he says I have no room giving relationship advice to anyone given that my marriage lasted less than a year." Tandy dismissed her warning.

"I think Buck is the only holdout then, because even her daddy thinks that they are good for each other." Deacon added. He would have liked any boy that wasn't Colt though.

"I'm not saying that they aren't perfect for each other I'm saying that the girl needs time. I didn't take enough time and look at how much trouble that got me in. The last time I didn't give something enough time I believe I ended up pregnant with twin Claybourne's." Rayna through out there.

"And you wouldn't trade 'em for anythin' in the world." Deacon called her out.

"Of course I wouldn't. Well there are times I'd like to trade that teenage Claybourne, but I guess I can keep her around too." Rayna laughed.

The baby monitor went off at that moment. "Speaking of the baby Claybourne's there they are now." Tandy quipped.

"Buck, do you mind helpin' Ray with them for a minute? I need to go see about my big baby girl and make sure that she's doin' ok." Deacon asked his friend.

"I don't mind helping out at all. Just so long as I don't have to burp Jayme." Bucky agreed.

Deacon went into his stash of candy bars he kept hidden in a health food box and grabbed a package of peanut butter cups. Before heading up the stairs. He shook his head as he heard Rayna say. "Tandy, you better be paying him back with a lot of sexual favors for putting up with night duty with the twins."

* * *

Deacon pushed the door to Maddie's room open quietly. She was lying on her side facing away from him, but he knew that she was awake. He kicked off his boots and crawled into bed beside her. "It looks like my princess's heart is still pretty broken. I was hopin' you'd be a little better by the time I got back."

"It just hurts so bad, daddy. He was such a jerk. He just couldn't take no for an answer. I didn't want to have sex with him just because it's what everyone expected us to do." She turned around and cried into her father's chest.

He held her close and kissed the top of her head. "Now, I know that this isn't gonna make everythin' better right away, but these always worked for your momma when she got sad." He handed her the package of peanut butter cups. He flipped on the TV and the Princess Bride just so happened to be on. "Now you just eat your candy and daddy will lay here and watch this girly movie with you until you feel a little better. If that doesn't work I can always go kick that little twerp's ass for hurtin' my baby girl."

"You don't have to do that, daddy. Will had to keep JC from beating him to death. I really thought he was going to punch him until I asked him not to. He just said some things he shouldn't have about you, mom, and Vince." She didn't give him the full details of what he said, because that would just enrage him even more.

"You know what? It doesn't matter. He only said all those things because he's jealous. You have a momma and two daddies that love you to death. And you have you Uncle Vinny, your Big Paw, your Ma, and your mawmaw as your guardian angels lookin' out for you. That's not to mention your group of crazy little friends. Your cousin Scarlett, your unofficial cousin Gunnar, your unofficial big brothers Will and Kevin, and your unofficial Aunt Sadie. You've also got a Mawmaw June and an Aunt Bev who are crazy 'bout you. I forgot to mention that you have Avery and Juliette too. That's a whole lotta love and someone who can barely get a scrap of attention from his daddy is gonna be really jealous of that." He hugged her a little tighter because he felt like she needed it.

"He said that JC was just gonna turn into a drunk like Vince and wrap his car around a tree too. He said the only good thing was he didn't manage to take any innocent people with him when he killed himself." She buried her face further into his chest.

"Your Uncle Vinny had his demons, but he was a good man and he was a good daddy. He didn't crash the truck that night because he'd been drinkin' he crashed the truck because it was slick out and he took the curb too fast. Sure it didn't help that he'd been drinkin', but he wasn't as drunk as everyone wants to act like he was. He was point one below the legal limit. And I tried so hard to save his life, but I couldn't. So, that's why we have to be Jimmy's family now and look out for him and save him from his horrible temper. I know he's your best friend and he's protected you a bunch of times. You need to do that for him now, because he's maybe gonna be a little sad too." He felt his blood boil. If he weren't a changed man he'd kill that Wheeler kid with his bare hands.

"That's why I stopped him from hitting Colt. I didn't want him to get in trouble and lose everything that he's worked so hard for. He's the only guy I can depend on besides you, my uncles, and all my unofficial big brothers." She snuggled closer into him. "Shouldn't you be feeding the boys their bottles right now?" She felt bad for taking her dad away from her baby brothers who needed him more.

"Nope, I'm right where I need to be right now, princess. I have plenty of other mornings to do bottle time with them, but I only get one chance to help nurse my little girl through her first broken heart. It might not seem like it right now, but daddy promises you everythin' is gonna be just fine. You're gonna find that boy that loves you for you and then my heart will break a little because I'll know he's the one." He swore to her. As much as he hated seeing her in pain. He wouldn't have traded this experience for anything in the world. Because he'd missed so much with her he cherished every little thing that they got together.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. It earned the M rating for sure, but I figured I owed to you after all the teasing I did. There's still some great stuff coming up with Maddie and JC and the big tour. Stay tuned for more. This might be my last update for a few days because I'm having teeth pulled and I may not feel up to updating, but I'll see what I can do. Until next time please review.


	49. Chapter 49

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Chicks Dig It by Chris Cagle, Love You Like That by Canaan Smith, Jackson by Johnny Cash and June Carter, Walking in Memphis by Lonestar, and Cry Like Memphis by Matt Kennon.

* * *

Chapter 49

" _Love, is a really big word, but haven't you heard it's dangerous. And you, you think you got it locked down, and figured out and buttoned up. But, I, I've been burned enough, so I've learned enough to watch my back. That's why I'm warnin' you what you're about do is deadly as. Dancin' on the devil's stove, playin' with the fire below, pushin' your luck dippin' your toe in the water. It's a pedal down to race the train. Chasin' down a hurricane a bullet in a spinnin' revolver."_ Will started his song.

" _Well, the heart it's a fragile thing hangin' on a string it don't take much. And soul it's a little bit stronger takes a longer to use it up. But when, when it all comes down cause it's gonna come down. You're gonna look around and wonder how you got to where you're standin' right now."_ JC took the second verse.

" _Dancin' on the devil's stove playin' with the fire below, pushin' your luck, dippin' your toe in the water. It's a pedal down to race the train. Chasin' down a hurricane a bullet in a spinnin' revolver."_ Avery and Gunnar joined them on the chorus.

Deacon came out and played the guitar solo.

" _Dancin' on the devil's stove, playin' with the fire below, pushin' your luck, dippin' your toe in the water. It's a pedal down to race the train chasin' down a hurricane a bullet in a spinnin' revolver. A pedal down to race the train chasin' down a hurricane a bullet in a spinnin' revolver."_

"Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the kickoff of the Angels and Outlaws tour. A big thank you to Mr. Will Lexington for lettin' us kick this off with his song. We are so excited to be startin' out here at the Bridgestone." Deacon got the crowd going. "Let me introduce you to the Outlaws. JC Grayson, Avery Barkley, Gunnar Scott, and Will Lexington." The crowd let out a huge cheer.

"Let's not forget our lead outlaw, Mr. Deacon Claybourne." Will introduced Deacon to the crowd.

"Now, we are gonna play a little longer for you tonight to really get this party started, so just sit back and enjoy." Deacon spoke again. "Now let's put your hands together for Mr. JC Grayson."

JC started playing once all the other guys left the stage. _"Daddy's belt, momma's drapes. Standin' tall on the backyard shed lookin' cool in my superman cape. I told the neighborhood girls said hey ya'll watch this. My fate was a broken arm and my reward one big kiss. When daddy asked me why I did it. I made him laugh out loud when I told him cause the chicks dig it."_

" _Scars heal glory fades and all we're left with are the memories made. Pain hurts, but only for a minute. Life is short so go on and live cause the chicks dig it."_ He moved around the stage as he sang.

" _Blacktop road learner permit thought I was Earnhardt drivin' fast, but I didn't see the ditch. Took out a mailbox, then fence, and then a barn. The police came and called my father, but I met the farmer's daughter. When the judge asked me why I did it he threw the book at me when I told him cause the chicks dig it."_

" _Scars heal glory fades and all we're left with are the memories made oh yeah. Pain hurts, but only for a minute. Life is short so go on and live cause the chicks dig it. Oh, yeah, ohhh. Just throw caution to the wind my friend then sit back and watch your life begin. Cause scars heal glory fades and all we're left with are the memories made oh yeah. Pain hurts, but only for minute yeah life is short so go on and live it cause the chicks dig it. Scars heal glory fades and all we're left with are the memories made. Pain hurts, but only for a minute. Yeah, life is short so go on and live it. It don't matter if you lose or if you win it hey the chicks dig it. The chicks dig it, the chicks dig it. Oh yeah, the chicks dig it."_

Avery went next for the guys. _"Hey, girl I'm just a small town runaround. I get my kicks out on the outskirts of town. I can never do it like a pretty city boy. I'm more a fishin' in the dark Nitty Gritty boy."_

" _So lay back and let me paint you a picture the way I wanna kiss you. Is slow as the Mississippi, strong as a fifth of whiskey, steady as a Tom Petty track. I wanna love wanna love you like that. Deeper than a sunset sky sweeter than Muscatine wine. All night til the sun comes back. I wanna love, wanna love, wanna love you like that."_ He sat on a stool and strummed his guitar as he sang.

" _When I'm with you I can see down the road girl not just the gravel when we're travelin' on girl. And I'm bettin' that it's gonna be a wild ride, but I promise that I'm gonna be there by your side. I think we've got another memory in the makin'. So baby let's take it, take it."_

" _Slow as the Mississippi, strong as a fifth of whiskey, steady as a Tom Petty track. I wanna love wanna love you like that. Deeper than a sunset sky sweeter than Muscatine wine. All night til the sun comes back. I wanna love, wanna love, wanna love you like that."_

" _I ain't gonna do like a pretty city boy I'm a fishin' in the dark Nitty Gritty boy. So let me love you, slow as the Mississippi, strong as a fifth of whiskey, steady as a Tom Petty track girl. I wanna love wanna love you like that. Deeper than a sunset sky sweeter than Muscatine wine. All night til the sun comes back. I wanna love, wanna love, wanna love you like that, baby. I wanna love, wanna love, wanna love you like that. Yeah, I could never do it like a pretty city boy, I'm more a fishin' in the dark Nitty Gritty boy."_

Since it was the opening night of the tour Rayna and Deacon made sure that each of their acts got at least a two song set in. They would have to work out a rotation so everyone got equal playing time, but this happened to work for the night.

"Now, I hope ya'll don't mind, but we are gonna close this down with an old favorite of ours." Rayna spoke to the crowd.

Deacon's fingers started to fly over his guitar strings.

" _We got married in a fever hotter than a pepper sprout we been talkin' 'bout Jackson ever since the fire went out."_ They opened the song together.

" _I'm goin' to Jackson I'm gonna mess around. Yeah I'm goin' to Jackson look out Jackson town."_ Deacon took that verse.

" _Well, go on down to Jackson go ahead and wreck your health. Go play your hand you big talkin' man and make a big fool of yourself. Yeah go Jackson. Go comb your hair."_ Rayna sang.

" _Honey, I'm gonna snowball Jackson."_ He winked at her.

" _See if I care."_ There was a daring look on her face.

" _When I breeze into that city. People gonna stoop and bow. All them women gonna make me teach 'em what they don't know how. I'm goin' to Jackson you turn a loose of my coat. Cause I'm goin' to Jackson."_ He shot her saucy grin.

" _Goodbye that's all she wrote. Let them laugh at you at Jackson and I'll be dancin' on a pony keg. Then lead you round town like a scalded hound with your tail tucked between your legs. Yeah go to Jackson. You big talkin' and I'll be waitin' in Jackson behind my Jaypan fan."_ She rubbed up against him as they sang.

" _Well, now we got married in a fever hotter than a pepper sprout. We've been talkin' 'bout Jackson ever since the fire went out. I'm goin' to Jackson yeah that's a fact. We're goin' to Jackson ain't never comin' back."_ They sang into the same mic.

" _Yeah, we got married in a fever hotter than a pepper sprout honey we've been talkin' 'bout Jackson ever since that fire went out."_

"Thank you, Nashville! It's always a real treat to play here and we will be closin' down here in a couple months." Rayna got wild cheers from the crowd.

* * *

The tour stopped in Memphis the next night to another sold out show. Rayna and Deacon had decided to be a little lax and let Maddie go out exploring with JC after the show was over hoping that it would cheer her up a little bit.

"Cricket, here we are. We have to go in. Come on now." JC stopped in front of a karaoke bar.

"No, we just played a show. We are not gonna go in there and do that." Maddie protested half heartedly.

"Oh yes we are. I've let you mope around about douche face long enough. Now it's time for you to get back out there and have some fun. There's no age limit on this club you're comin' in here and singin' with me even if I have to drag you." He maintained stubbornly.

"Fine," She rolled her eyes and sighed.

It was a slow night so they got up on stage pretty quickly.

" _Put on my blue suede shoes and I boarded the plane touched down in the land of the delta blues in the middle of the pourin' rain. W.C. Handy won't you look down over me? Cause I've got a first class ticket and I'm blue as a boy can be."_ JC started out the song. It took a playful nudge from him to get Maddie to join him on the chorus.

" _Walkin' in Memphis walkin' with my feet ten feet off the Beale walkin' in Memphis, but do I really feel the way I feel?"_

" _Saw the ghost of Elvis down on Union Avenue followed him up to the gates of Graceland and watched him walk right through. Now security didn't see him they just hovered around his tomb. There's a pretty little thing waitin' on the king down in the jungle room."_ He took the verse again.

" _Walkin' in Memphis walkin' with my feet ten feet off the Beale walkin' in Memphis, but do I really feel the way I feel?"_

" _They've got catfish on the table they've got gospel in the air. And Rev. Green be glad to see you when you haven't got a prayer you've got a prayer in Memphis."_ They stared into each other's eyes as they sang soulfully.

" _Now Muriel plays the piano every Friday at the Hollywood and they brought me down to see and they asked me if I would. Do a little number and I sang with all my might. She said tell me are you a Christian and I said ma'am I am tonight."_ He belted out.

" _Walkin' in Memphis walkin' with my feet ten feet off the Beale walkin' in Memphis, but do I really feel the way I feel? Oh, walkin' in Memphis walkin' with my feet ten feet off the Beale, but do I really feel the way I feel? Oh, walkin' in Memphis, Ohhhh. Yeah, walkin' in Memphis."_ They ended the song together on a strong note.

Everyone in the bar stood and cheered for them.

The bar manager took the stage. "We have just been graced with the presence of JC Grayson and Maddie Claybourne fresh off tonight's show of the Angels and Outlaws tour. I was hopin' that since I happen to have a guitar handy they wouldn't mind doin' a couple more for us. What do ya'll say to that?" He asked. He handed JC the guitar.

The crowd cheered in approval.

"Well, I don't think we can let our fans down." Maddie grinned.

"I wouldn't dream of it." JC agreed. "Cry Like Memphis?" He asked.

"Perfect." She agreed.

JC started to pick out a bluesy tune on his borrowed guitar. _"The home of the blues is where I live trapped inside these lonely walls that don't forgive. Surrounded by a memory her goodbye haunts me like a Beale Street melody. And I've done everythin', but get down on my knees. But if my tears will set this ghost inside me free."_

" _I'm gonna cry like Memphis I'm goin' three times under gonna drown my sorrow with tears that roll like thunder til I can find the strength til I can carry on. I'm gonna cry like Memphis when they heard the king was gone."_ He and Maddie were both able to show off their impressive vocal ranges on this song.

" _Love me tender cuts through the dark. Comin' from an open window of a passin' car. And in that moment oh I believe that I can almost feel your body next to me. But one heart beat slowly brings me back around. I know you're gone and I know when I break down."_ He wailed.

" _I'm gonna cry like Memphis I'm goin' three times under gonna drown my sorrow with tears that roll like thunder til I can find the strength til I can carry on. I'm gonna cry like Memphis when they heard the king was gone."_

JC played a wailing guitar solo that cut to the soul.

" _Whoa, til I can find the strength, til I can carry on. I'm gonna cry like Memphis when they heard the king was gone."_

By the time they left the bar a light drizzle had started to fall. JC took his leather jacket off and wrapped it around Maddie's shoulders. "There you go, we can't have you gettin' sick."

"What about you? You just have a thin shirt on." Maddie asked him.

"I'll be fine I don't get sick easily. Plus, I've got this cowboy hat to keep me a little dry." He grinned at her.

"Thanks for making me come out tonight. That's the most fun I've had since I broke up with douche face." She had started referring to Colt by the same name that JC called him.

"That's my girl, I knew that you were still in there some where. You don't need a man to define who you are and you damn sure don't need one that's gonna act like he owns you and everything you are you owe to him. You want a man that treats you the way that your daddy treats your momma. Those two are equal partners in everythin' that they do. I want that with someone someday." He mused as he walked her back to the hotel. He stopped outside the door and tipped his hat to let the water run off of it.

"Do you ever take that hat off for anything?" She joked with him.

"I take this hat off for exactly three things, kissin', showerin', and I'm sure from the blush on your face right now you can guess what that third thing is." He laughed.

"Hey, there you two crazy kids are. Sadie and I caught your set at that bar and it was amazin'." Will caught up to them in the lobby.

"Someone obviously went to the Deacon Claybourne school of song writin' and the other one is clearly the offspring of Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne. You two were phenomenal." Sadie walked up and wrapped her arms around Maddie's shoulders.

"You know that hotel restaurant is still open if you two wanna grab some food with us?" Will suggested.

"I'm down I don't have anyone to answer to." JC agreed.

"Mom and dad didn't give me a curfew. I think as long as they know where I am and that I'm ok they don't worry so much. Just let me send them a text and I'm in too." Maddie added.

They settled into a private comfortable booth in the back of the restaurant where there was no chance of them being recognized.

"Can we get a pitcher of beer and a pitcher of sangria." Will requested. The waiter wasn't too worried about checking IDs and he filled the order without question.

"Will, if I take her back drunk it's gonna be my ass." JC cautioned him.

"Relax, you ain't takin' her back drunk. She's gonna have a drink or two and then I'm cuttin' her off. Poor Sadie is responsible for cuttin' the two of us off so I feel sorry for her." Will laughed.

"So, what's it like being on tour with your ex-wife?" Maddie asked after their food had come.

"It's not as bad as it could be. Considering that she spends most of her time with Jeff anyway and I don't have to see her unless it's on stage." Will replied.

"What about Kevin?" Maddie just felt like prying.

"Kevin and I are complicated I guess. Sometimes I don't think I'm gay enough for him and his stupid judgmental friends. I can be myself with ya'll. You see me for what I am a cowboy that's gay not a gay cowboy. Bein' gay is just a part of who I am." Will explained to her.

"A wise man once told me that if he can't accept you for what you and who you are he isn't worth your time. There's a guy out there who will love you and accept you for you." Maddie told him much the same thing that Deacon had told her.

"Was this man by chance named Deacon?" Sadie teased her.

"He was right. We gotta give him credit when he's right or my mom never will." Maddie laughed starting to feel the effects of the drink she'd had.

"We'll see what this time apart does for us. We have a break in a couple of weeks and if things are still the same then I guess I'll know he's not the one and it's ok for me to break up with him." Will shrugged.

"And if you want I can kick his ass for hurtin' my best friend." JC offered.

JC walked Maddie up to her parents' hotel suite just to make sure that she got there ok. "I had a really good time tonight, Cricket, I'm glad that you came with me."

"I had a really good time too. I'm glad that you're too damn stubborn to take no for an answer." She smirked. She flicked out her tongue and licked her dry lips. It was probably the alcohol bolstering her courage, but she had to do this or she'd regret it. "JC, take your hat off please."

For him there was no mistaking the look in her eyes and he took his hat off. He dipped his head and kissed her lips softly before pulling back. "That's all you're gonna get out of me tonight. You don't want it to be like this because you're hurtin' or because you've been drinkin'. I ain't gonna kiss you for real until the time is right and then and I don't if it's worth messin' up our friendship over somethin' that might not work out." He put his hat back on. He knew that was a lie. He was fighting every fiber of his being that kept telling him to kiss her deeper.

"I guess you're right, I better get inside before my parents have a major freak out." She replied.

"Night, Cricket," He tipped his hat to her.

"Night, JC." She used her keycard to let herself into the suite.

Rayna and Deacon were both walking the floor of the hotel suite with the twins trying to get them back to sleep. So far they had been very good babies to travel with. They were just getting ready to go back down after their nightly feeding.

"Look at that smile on her face. I didn't think we were ever gonna see it again." Rayna commented.

"Looks like her best friend got her sorted out just fine tonight." Deacon agreed with her.

"Daddy and I saw the YouTube clips of you and JC playing that bar and it was magic. I loved your take on Walking In Memphis and Cry Like Memphis is a great song. Which one of you wrote it?" Rayna rubbed soft circles on Jaymes' back.

"He wrote Cry Like Memphis, but I helped him with the arrangement and that's how I knew the words. I hope you're not mad at me for staying out so late." Maddie looked down at the floor.

"We're not mad at you for that at all. You called and checked in all night. We knew who you were with and we knew that you were safe. You showed a lot of responsibility and I'm very proud of you." Deacon praised her.

"Thanks, dad, you have no idea how much that means to me coming from you." She blushed at his words.

"Go on and get some sleep we have to get out of here early in the morning. We are playing Mobile tomorrow night and that's a little bit of a drive. Sure you can sleep on the bus, but I don't wanna have to practically throw you out of bed to get you down there." Rayna joked with her.

"Night mom," Maddie kissed her mother's cheek. "Night, daddy," She kissed Deacon's cheek and then she kissed both the boys' heads before heading off to sleep.

* * *

" _She's as bright as the Dallas sky she always holds her head up high she loves the company of her family. She has faith in God's greater plan she trusts I'm a good man. That's why I'll always believe she's like Texas and she likes me."_ JC was playing around with a new song that he was in the process of writing.

"Either one of you three says something to him or I do. I can't take this anymore. He's been like this since Memphis." Avery whispered to Gunnar, Scarlett, and Will. None of them were actually on the bus they were supposed to be on at the moment, but Rayna and Deacon weren't really strict about that rule. As a matter of fact Cadence was on their bus having a play date with Little Deacon and Jaymes. He would return the favor later when they wanted to have a date night.

"I'm not sayin' anythin' to him. It's like beatin' my head against a brick wall." Scarlett begged off.

"Like he listens to anythin' anyone has to say anyway." Gunnar shrugged his shoulders.

Will sighed when he saw that all eyes were on him. "Why me? We all know how I am in the romance department."

"Because you're his best friend and he's more likely to listen to you than he is to anyone else." Scarlett whispered harshly.

"Hell, I don't even have a clue of what to say to him. Look at the state my marriage is in. I don't wanna be a hypocrite." Avery backed off even though he was the one to bring the subject up.

"We could always call Sadie up and have her come get on the bus to talk to him." Gunnar suggested.

"Nah, she's workin' on somethin' with Layla right now or somethin' like that. And she threatened to make me sorry I'm man the next time I call her to settle one of our juvenile disputes." Will nixed that idea.

Scarlett sighed loudly and rolled her eyes. "You three are the biggest cowards on the face of the earth. I'll go talk to him." She got up and went to sit next to JC.

JC took his headphones off his ears and looked over at Scarlett. "Somethin' I can help you with or did you just wanna stare at my handsome face?"

"I'm gonna be blunt with you cause that seems to be what you need. Cut all the moon doggin' bullshit and tell her how you really feel. She ain't gonna know that you like her unless you tell her that." She held up her hand to stop him when it looked like he was going to say something. "Don't you dare try to tell me that you don't know what I'm talkin' 'bout because you damn well do. You like Maddie and Maddie likes you for that matter. Man up and stop bein' a little bitch baby. You're supposed to be bad Green Beret Guy, but you can't even tell a little ol' girl how you feel 'bout her." She got up after she spoke her peace because she wasn't interested in hearing anymore excuses from him.

* * *

" _Maybe it was Memphis. Maybe it was southern summer nights, maybe it was you, maybe it was me, but it sure felt right."_ Maddie had her headphones in and was strumming her guitar. She too was working on a new song.

"Well, that is a new and improved version of Maddie. That's not the same sullen teen that we rolled out on this tour with." Sadie commented. She had lied to Will she told him she was working with Layla. She just hadn't wanted him to bug her with his bullshit.

"I know and I love it. She's been like that since Memphis. I don't know what ya'll said to her that night, but it worked wonders for her attitude. She's so much happier and she hasn't mentioned Colt's name in forever." Rayna took a sip of her coffee. With Tandy back in Nashville running Highway 65 Sadie had become her gossip partner.

"It's not ya'll it's a certain cowboy that goes by the name JC. You should have seen them when we had dinner with them that night. They hang on to every word that each other says. It's pretty damn adorable actually." Sadie looked over to the living area of the bus where Deacon was rolling around on the floor playing with the twins and Cadence. "That's pretty damn adorable too though."

"Hey, Catydid, you tell them two bad ol' boys to move over and let you play too. Yes, that Jayme is a big ol' bully when he wants to be you gotta push back." Deacon cooed at the little girl.

Rayna looked around to make sure neither of her girls could hear what she was about to say before she spoke. "Why do you think I have such a hard time keeping my legs closed when I'm alone with him? It should be illegal for one man to be that sexy."

"You are a pervert and a sex addict." Sadie shook with laughter.

"Getting back on topic. The only two people that don't know Maddie and JC like each other are Maddie and JC. They keep playin' around too much longer and I'm gonna give them a push in the right direction." Rayna shook her head.

"Just so you know. I heard that Ray." Deacon called from the floor.

"I meant for you to." Rayna called back.

* * *

"Here let me see that before you have a sticky mess and bugs all over you." JC took the ice cream cone out of Daphne's hand and licked all around it for her to keep it from dripping everywhere. "There you go." He handed it back to her.

"Thanks, JC, you're the best." Daphne beamed at him. She'd been feeling a little left out since there was no one else on the tour her age and she never got to hang out or do any of the fun stuff that Maddie did.

When JC heard about it he'd decided to take matters into his own hands. He'd showed up at her tour bus with a bouquet of pink carnations and asked her to go on a date just the two of them. "No problem at all. If you finish that ice cream up. We have time to ride the Ferris Wheel and the rollercoaster before we have to get ready for our set." They were playing the peach festival in Atlanta today and then tomorrow night they would play at the Georgia Dome. Today was just for the young acts though.

"Ok, that sounds perfect." Daphne agreed with him.

"So, you and JC?" Rayna broached the subject with her daughter as they sat outside of their tour bus in lawn chairs.

"What about us? Mom, I shouldn't have to tell you of all people that there is nothing going on between me and JC. I just broke up with Colt and I need time I guess. Besides that I don't think he likes me like that anyway." Maddie replied.

"What makes you think that?" Rayna was really curious now.

"Back in Memphis he told me that he only takes his hat off for three things, kissing, showering, and he left the third one unsaid so I can only assume he meant sex. When he dropped me off at the room that night I asked him to take his hat off and he barely pecked me on the lips. He said he didn't want to risk losing me as a friend and he didn't want that to be something that happened because I was hurting. That's what I think that." Maddie explained.

Rayna bit back a smile. Maybe those two weren't as hopeless as she'd thought they were. "Well, it wouldn't be wrong if it did turn out that you two liked each other that way. And let me tell you he is one of the good ones. I don't know many other teenage boys that would go out of his way to take his best friend's little sister on a date because she was feeling left out. That's all I'm gonna say about that." She knew if she said too much Maddie would just fight her on it.

JC walked up carrying Daphne on his shoulders a few minutes later. He deposited her on her feet and kissed her hand. "Thank you for the lovely afternoon, Ms. Claybourne. We will have to do it again sometime. I thoroughly enjoyed your company." He was playing the southern gentleman card to the hilt.

Daphne giggled and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Mr. Grayson, we will have to do this again."

Rayna shot Maddie a look that seemed to say. 'See what I mean'.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know that Layla and Jeff haven't been around much, but that will change a little later on when Marcus comes into the picture. Maddie and JC are inching closer and closer to each other. Don't worry I'm only going to tease you with that for a little while longer before I finally put them together. Until next time please review.


	50. Chapter 50

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Ready, Set, Don't Go by Billy Ray Cyrus, You're Gonna Miss This by Trace Adkins, She's Like Texas by Josh Abbott Band, Maybe It Was Memphis by Pam Tillis, and I'll Love You Anyway by Trent Willmon.

* * *

Chapter 50

"Maddie," Deacon nudged his daughter softly to wake her up.

Maddie swatted him away with her hand. "Go away, dad. It's too damn early." She griped.

He laughed because he thought it was amusing if Rayna had heard her say it there would have been a shit storm. "Come on, Princess, you have very, very important plans with daddy this mornin' and you have been lookin' forward to them for a very long time." He held a cup of coffee under her nose and that seemed to do the trick. "Get dressed and ready you have half an hour I'll be waitin' out in the driveway for you. But, first I have somethin' I wanna play for you."

He picked up the guitar he'd carried into the room with him and started to play. _"She's gotta do what she's gotta and I gotta like it or not. She's got dreams too big for this town and she needs to give 'em a shot whatever they are. Looks like she's already to leave nothin' left to pack. Ain't no room for me in that car even in she ask me to tag along, God I gotta be strong. She's at the startin' line of the rest of her life as ready as she's ever been got the hunger and the stars in her eyes the prize is hers to win she's waitin' on my blessin' fore she hits that open road. Baby get ready, get set, don't go."_ He'd searched for the perfect song to sing to her this morning and none of them fit so he'd written one.

" _She says things are fallin' in place feels like they're fallin' apart. Painted this big ol' smile on my face to hide my broken heart. If only she knew this is where I don't say what I want so bad to say. This is where I want to, but I won't get in the way of her and her dreams and her spreadin' her wings."_ He had to blink back the tears in his eyes.

" _She's at the startin' line of the rest of her life as ready as she's ever been. Got the hunger and the stars in her eyes the prize is hers to win. She's waitin' on my blessin' fore she hits that open road. Baby get ready, get set, don't go."_

Even Maddie had to fight back tears now.

" _She's at the startin' line of the rest of her life as ready as she's ever been. Got the hunger and the stars in her eyes the prize is hers to win. She's waitin' on my blessin' fore she hits that open road, but baby get ready, get set please don't go. Don't go. Mmm don't go. Ohhh. She's gotta do what's she's gotta do. She's gotta do what she's gotta do. Mmm. Don't go. She's gotta do what she's gotta do."_

He put his guitar down and pulled her into a hug. "Happy sixteenth birthday, baby girl. I love you so much." He had saved that song especially for the two of them because it captured the essence of the bond that they shared.

"I love you too, daddy, I just wish you hadn't woken me up so early." She replied.

"Just hush up and get ready." He wiped a tear away from her cheek.

Maddie was still grumbling when she met him down at his truck half an hour later.

Deacon sat in the passenger seat reading the morning news on his iPad while he sipped coffee from his travel mug. "It's 'bout time you're ready to go I've only been waitin' out here for forever."

Maddie got behind the wheel of his old truck. He'd forbidden her and Rayna both from driving his new baby for good reason. She put on her seatbelt and adjusted everything that needed to be adjusted before she pulled out onto the road. She didn't have to ask him where they were going because she already knew.

He climbed out of the truck once he reached their destination, but not before kissing her cheek. "You're gonna do great, baby girl, I have complete faith in you." He walked inside the DMV as the tester came out to get in the truck with Maddie.

He went in and took a seat to wait for his daughter to take her driver's exam. It didn't seem possible to him that she was old enough for this already. He'd just gotten here and already she was driving and having relationships with boys. He'd decided to have her take her test in his old truck because that's what she drove the most. He wasn't nervous in the least bit he knew that she had this in the bag. They had spent hours out on the road together not to mention the time she'd spent in Driver's Ed at school.

He'd only been waiting for twenty minutes when Maddie walked into the building with the biggest smile he'd ever seen on her face.

"Dad! I passed!" She squealed and threw her arms around his neck.

"I'm so proud of you, baby girl. I knew that you could do it." He hugged her tightly and made sure that she couldn't see the tears welling up in his eyes.

"I just need to go get my picture taken for my license and then we can go." She told him.

"I'll be right here waitin'." He took a seat again. He tapped out a quick text to Rayna to let her know that Maddie had passed and to get her surprise ready.

"We can go now." She said when she returned ten minutes later.

"Ok, let's get out of here." He waved off the keys when she tried to pass them to him. "You drive us home."

Rayna was waiting for them in the driveway when they pulled in. She held a stack of pancakes with a lit candle in the middle of them.

"What's this?" Maddie asked a look of surprise on her face.

"Happy sweet sixteen, baby girl." Rayna kissed her cheek.

"Thanks, mom." Maddie blew out the candle.

"That's not all you've got for your birthday." Deacon hit the garage door opener. Sitting in the space next to Rayna's SUV was a brand new yellow Jeep Wrangler.

"Oh my God! Dad! Are you serious right now? This is mine?" Maddie jumped up and hugged him tightly.

"It's all yours, baby girl. I thought that a jeep would be perfect for you. It's the right mix of badass and girly." He grinned at her.

"Thank you both so much. I don't even know what to say." Maddie gushed excitedly.

"Well, you're gonna need the keys. I know a few people who are waitin' for you down at the diner by the office to celebrate with you." He tossed her the keys to the jeep.

"You guys are the best I love you so much." Maddie hugged them both again.

"You're welcome. You deserve it." Rayna gave her a watery smile.

"So, I'll be back in a little while." Maddie ran and jumped into the driver's seat of her jeep. She gave them a honk a little wave as she pulled out of the driveway.

"There goes our baby girl, Deacon. She's all grown up now." Rayna looked up at him teary eyed.

"I know, babe, I know. But, she's gonna be just fine, because she has us and she always will." Deacon did his best to keep his emotions under control.

"That's right she can't get rid of us for anything in the world. What do you we go pick out bathroom tile while you help me give the twins their bottles?" She suggested.

"Damn it, I should have known I wasn't gonna get out of picking out bathroom tile." He grumbled playfully.

"Maddie, I know that I said I wouldn't embarrass you in front of all your friends tonight, but I lied a little bit. I wrote a song and I wanna play it for you tonight." Deacon spoke into the mic. They had rented out the Bluebird for her birthday. She only turned sixteen once and it was worth doing in style.

Maddie just rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her face.

Deacon softly strummed the opening chords to the first song. _"She was starin' out the window of that SUV complainin' sayin' I can't wait to turn eighteen. She said I'll make my own money and I'll make my own rules momma put the car in park out there in front of the school. And she kissed her head and said I was just like you."_

" _You're gonna miss this you're gonna want this back. You're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast. These are some good times so take a good look around you may not know it now, but you're gonna miss this."_ Rayna joined him. This was a message that they had both wanted to send to their daughter.

" _Before she knows it she's a brand new bride in her one-bedroom apartment and her daddy stops by. He tells her it's a nice place she says it'll do for now. Starts talkin' 'bout babies and buyin' a house. Daddy shakes his head baby just slow down."_

" _Cause you're gonna miss this you're gonna want this back you're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast. These are some good times so take a good look a around you may not know it now, but you're gonna miss this."_

" _Five years later there's a plumber workin' on the water heater, dog's barkin', phone's ringin', one kid's cryin' one kid's screamin' and she keeps apologizin' he says they don't bother me got two babies of my own one's thirty-six one's twenty-three. It's hard to believe, but you're gonna miss this you're gonna want this back you're gonna wish these days hadn't gone by so fast. These are some good times so take a good look around you may not know it now, but you're gonna miss this. You're gonna miss this. Yeah, you're gonna miss this."_

If Maddie had taken the message to hear about not growing up so fast she hadn't let show she was too busy having a good time with her friends.

* * *

Dallas

The tour was scheduled to stop for four days in Dallas two days to play the Dallas County Fair and two days for the Angels and Outlaws tour. It just so happened that JC and Will were both from the Dallas area.

"Look at that my three favorite Texans all on the same bus not that that should surprise me. I just wanted to know if any of you wanted me to leave any extra tickets and backstage passes at the stadium for family and friends." Rayna addressed Gunnar, JC, and Will.

"Can I get three? For my nephew Micah and his grandparents." Gunnar asked.

"Consider it done." Rayna granted. "Jimmy, Deacon already had Rusty take care of you when it comes to that. I know that Vince had more relatives than the Walton's. That just leaves you, Will."

Will gave a humorless snort. "All the friends and family I got are on these buses. My parents disowned me and none of the rest of the family will have anythin' to do with me."

"You don't even need a pass for Kevin?" She asked.

"Kevin couldn't make it. He's got some big time writin' gig that he couldn't pass up and I wouldn't want him to. Besides that why do I need extra passes and tickets when my parents are the co-headliners of this tour?" Will tried to make a joke out of it.

She smiled warmly at him. "Ya'll are free to go explore as long as you stay sober before your performances. Ya'll know when you're supposed to be back for sound check don't make me have to hunt you down. I can promise you all that it won't be a pleasant experience if I do. Now, get out of here before I change my mind and have all of you fit with ankle monitors." She shooed them off.

"How is it that you told them to go explore and we still ended up with the majority of them?" Deacon laughed as he pushed the twins' stroller.

"I don't know it's like they are all our children or somethin'. And you should know by now that everywhere I go Sadie goes just in case any juicy gossip comes up that we have to share with each other." Rayna looped her arm through his.

"Hey, Daphne, you wanna see these horses?" JC climbed over the fencing and into the pen with the horses he made a clicking sound with his tongue and a coal black horse approached him.

"JC, what are you doin'? The last time I checked it was still legal to shoot horse thieves in Texas." Deacon stressed.

"Don't worry so much, Uncle Deac, this is plenty legal." JC reached into a barrel and pulled out an apple that he handed to Daphne. He led the horse over to her by his reins. "Go on and feed him that apple he'll be gentle. He's a friendly guy." He stroked his muzzle. "Shh, Apollo, it's ok, you're safe. She ain't gonna hurt you."

Daphne giggled as the horse slurped the apple out of her hand.

"See, there, Apollo, you really have to learn to trust me more often." JC stroked the horse's mane.

"Apollo has trust issues since his best friend abandoned him to join the Army and then run off to Nashville to be a big ol' country music star." A bear of a man walked out of a horse trailer. "Little Jimmy Grayson, look at you, boy."

"Mad Max Waterson, still looks like you can toss around beer kegs for fun." JC grinned broadly.

Max opened his arms and hugged JC so tightly he was lifted off the ground. "It's damn good to see you, little brother. You don't call, you don't write, you don't email. We were startin' to worry 'bout you."

"Max, put me down you overgrown teddy bear. You still don't know your own damn strength." JC bitched.

"Sorry, Hailey, is gonna be real happy to see that her baby brother is alive and well." Max put him back on his feet.

"Yeah, or she's gonna bitch me out and give me an earful about how horrible I am. One of the two. You know how Hailey is you're the one married to her mean ass." JC joked and then he remembered his manners. "Everybody, this is my brother-in-law Max. Max, this is everybody."

"I know Rayna Jaymes and Freakin' Deacon Claybourne when I see 'em. We only played poker together countless times. A little secret you might not know about me, Jimmy Boy, I was Rayna's bass player for awhile." Max shook Deacon's hand and hugged Rayna. "It is so good to see both of you."

"It's good to see you too, Max." Rayna smiled at him.

Max bent down so that he was at Daphne's level. "How'd you like to come in here and see some horses up close and personal?" He didn't wait for her to answer he just lifted her over the fence and sat her on top of Apollo. "This is Jimmy's horse. The kids all love him and he loves them. He's real gentle natured just like Jimmy is." He put the reins in her hands. "He knows what to do all you have to do is hold those reins. And I'll be right here to watch out for you."

JC tugged at his earlobe uncomfortably. "Ma and Pop comin' today?"

"What do you think? They bought tickets to see you play the minute they went on sale. They should be here anytime now. Though you know Pop he's gotta supervise all the ranch hands and tell them what to do like they don't know what to do without him standin' right there over them." Max chuckled. He nodded in Will's direction. "Looks like you know your way around a horse too."

Will extended his hand to Max. "Will Lexington, I grew up around these parts."

Max took his hand and shook it enthusiastically. "Max Waterson, I know who you are. I can't get my son to stop playin' your record on repeat he loves it. I'd wager to say that I know the words to I'm On It 'bout as well as you do at this point."

"It's always a pleasure to run into a fan." Will smiled politely. This was not at all the reception he'd expected to be given in Texas since he came out at gay.

"I don't mean to put you on the spot or anythin' I just want you to know I think what you did took brass balls. I ain't praisin' you for admittin' to somethin' that was none of no one's damn business. I'm praisin' you for havin' the courage to stand up like a man and basically tell the world they could like it or not." Max said.

"Thank you very much." Will blushed.

"Hey, MJ, come here a minute!" JC called out to his nephew.

MJ appeared from the inside of the trailer a moment later. "Uncle Jimmy."

"Hey, I got someone here I want you to meet." JC told him and he pointed at Will. "This is my best friend Will Lexington. I heard that you're a pretty big fan of his. I thought you might like to meet him. The best part is he can rope steer and ride horses too."

"Mr. Lexington, it's such an honor to meet you." MJ blushed. He had hair the color of honey butter and light blue eyes. He'd clearly taken after his father in the looks department.

"None of that Mr. Lexington stuff call me Will. I'm playin' a set here tonight and I would be honored if you would join me stage side. That invitation is extended to your momma and daddy too of course. In the meantime, I'll see if I can't dig up some merchandise to sign for you. How's that sound to you?" Will asked him.

"That sounds amazin'." MJ gushed.

"MJ, what do you say?" Max asked his son.

"Thank you, Will." MJ said gratefully.

"No problem," Will ruffled his hair.

"I'll tell ya'll what. I'd be absolutely honored if you'd let me give those adorable little boys their first horse ride." Max indicated Little Deacon and Jaymes.

"I can't think of anyone else I'd rather have do it." Rayna smiled at him.

* * *

The reunion that Deacon had been hoping to avoid for as long as possible happened just before JC took the stage to play his set.

"Well, Deacon, are you just gonna stand there like you don't know me or are you gonna say hi?" An older woman with silver hair asked him.

"Hi, Dixie, it's really good to see you. I just didn't know if you'd wanna talk to me or not given how things ended with Vinny." Deacon stuffed his hands into his back pockets.

"Deacon, I never blamed you for one second for what happened to Vince. I know that you tried like hell to save his life that night. What we never told you was because of you doin' CPR they were able to restart his heart and that kept him alive long enough for us to be able to tell him goodbye. I could never be mad at you for that. You, Rayna, Amy, and eventually Jimmy were the only family he could always count on. I'll always be grateful to you for that." Dixie pulled him into a hug.

Deacon took a deep shuddering breath. "Thank you, Dixie, you have no idea how badly I needed to hear that from you."

"Deacon, it's good to see you." Jack Grayson offered his hand to him.

"It's good to see you too, Big Jack." Deacon shook his hand.

Jack leaned in and whispered into his ear. "Thank you for always bein' there for my boy and for lookin' out for my grandson."

"Alright, ya'll I decided that I would start my set tonight with a new one I just wrote and I couldn't think of a more perfect place to play it than right here at home in Dallas. Texas forever." JC spoke to the crowd he got a loud cheer in return.

" _She's as free as bluebonnets in the summer she's as hot as the Padre Island sun. Most of the time she's as warm and friendly like the hills that surround Austin. She's as bright as the Dallas sky she always holds her head up high she loves the company of her family. She has faith in God's greater plan she trusts I'm a good man and that's why I'll always believe she likes Texas and she likes me."_ His eyes searched for Maddie on the side of the stage as he sang this was basically his way of telling her how he felt about her. He frowned a little when he saw Colt standing next to her.

"Colt, what are you doing here?" Maddie asked.

"Look, I said some things in Atlanta that I wanted to apologize for. I didn't mean a word of it, it was the booze talking and I was hoping that you would just talk to me and maybe think about giving me another chance." Colt replied.

"We'll see. We can talk. I have a set in a little while, so we will talk before then and then maybe a little afterwards, but that's it. I'm not making you any promises." She retorted.

" _Her eyes are green like the trees in Nacogdoches. Her teeth are white as cotton in the fall. And when she laughs you'll always take notice cause her heart's charm will shine right through it all."_ He put all his feelings into this song.

" _She's as bright as the Dallas sky she always holds her head up high. She loves the company of her family. She has faith in God's greater plan. She trusts I'm a good man. And that's why I'll always believe she's like Texas and she likes me."_

" _Her moods can change like the weather out in Lubbock, but if you show her love, man, she'll return it. She's as bright as the Dallas sky she always holds her head up high. She loves the company of her family. She has faith in God's greater plan. She trusts I'm a good man. And that's why I'll always believe she's like Texas and she likes me. Oh, she's like Texas and she likes me."_

He got thunderous applause from the crowd for that song, but he couldn't tell if he'd reached the one person that he wanted to reach the most.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

" _Lookin' at you through a misty moonlight katydid sing like a symphony. Porch swing swayin' like a Tennessee lullaby. Melody blowin' through a willow tree. What was I supposed to do? Standin' there lookin' at you? Lonely boy far from home."_ Maddie started her set with the song she'd just written.

" _Maybe it was Memphis. Maybe it was southern summer nights. Maybe it was you maybe it was me, but it sure felt right."_ Daphne joined her here.

" _Read about you in a Faulkner novel. Met you once in a Williams' play. Heard about you in a country love song. Summer night beauty took my breath away. What was I supposed to do standin' there lookin' at you? Lonely boy far from home."_

" _Maybe it was Memphis. Maybe it was southern summer nights. Maybe it was you maybe it was me, but it sure felt right."_ Maddie looked for JC. He was at the side of the stage nursing a beer. Colt was there too his eyes glued to her.

" _Maybe it was Memphis. Maybe it was southern summer nights. Maybe it was you maybe it was me, but it sure felt right."_ It felt so wrong to be singing the song she'd written for JC with Colt standing right there. It was supposed to be intimate and personal.

" _Every night now since I been back home I lie awake driftin' in my memory. Think about you on your momma's front porch swing talkin' that way so soft to me. What was I supposed to do standin' there lookin' at you? Lonely boy far from home."_

" _Maybe it was Memphis. Maybe it was southern summer nights, maybe it was you maybe it was me, but sure felt right."_

"Wow, Maddie, that was really great." Colt hugged her when she left the stage.

"Thanks, Colt." She didn't really hug him back her eyes were too busy locked on JC's. "JC, what do you think?"

"I thought it was amazin' as usual. Good job, partner." JC downed another beer.

"Mind if I catch Will's set with you?" Colt asked her.

"Sure, come on." Maddie took his hand reluctantly.

"Little brother, here's some free advice. If you like that girl as much as it looks like you do you won't let that douchebag win her over." Max advised him.

"Yeah thanks, Max. I'm workin' on it." JC replied.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Will played through most of his set and the crowd was really into it which was a surprise for him. "Now, I'm gonna do somethin' I don't normally do. I'm gonna let my best friend hijack my set. So, ya'll put your hands together for Mr. JC Grayson."

"Thanks, Will, I owe you one, brother. See I wrote a song 'bout a girl and I'm not sure that she got the message earlier, so I'm gonna try this again." JC chuckled and he began to play. He looked over at Maddie to make sure she knew he was talking about her.

" _Even if you only need a shoulder if you only need a helpin' hand. And even if right now you're really only just lookin' for a friend. I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway I can."_ He kept his eyes trained on Maddie the whole time he sang.

" _If you only want someone to talk to through the darkest hours of your night. I'll even try to help you slay those dragons that you're too afraid to fight. I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway I can."_

Maddie moved away from Colt and closer to the stage so she could listen.

" _I'll be there when the sun is shinin' I'll be there in the pourin' rain. I'll be there when the tears are fallin' through the brightest joy and the deepest pain. I'll be there on the day you wake up and realize that I'm the one and that this is love. Aww, baby, this is love."_ He poured every ounce of feeling he had in his body into the chorus.

" _Someday if our road gets rough and rocky I won't be that guy who walks away. I can promise you without a doubt my love for you will never change, no it'll never change. I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway I can. I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway I can. I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway, I'll love you anyway I can. Anyway I can."_

"Thank ya'll for lettin' me do that for you. Maybe the message got through loud and clear this time." JC said before he left the stage he walked right past Maddie like he didn't see her standing right there.

Maddie looked at his retreating form and then she looked over at Colt. "Colt, I can't do this with you, I'm sorry. We just aren't right for each other. I can't waste anymore time with something that will never work. I need to go."

She took off after JC. "JC!" she called after him. "JC, wait up." It took some doing because of his long legs, but eventually she caught up to him. "Didn't you hear me?"

"I don't know I guess that depends if you heard me over Wheeler or not." JC replied and he kept walking. They walked along in silence until they reached his Pop's truck that was parked out by an old set of train tracks. He unlocked the cab and pulled a blanket out.

He let down the tailgate and spread the blanket out. He offered his hand to Maddie and helped her climb up. "I didn't want you to mess you dress up."

"Wouldn't have mattered as long as I was with you." She replied. "Did you mean what you sang tonight?" She asked him.

"I meant every word of it. I'm done denyin' this whatever it is between us. Maddie, I've tried to ignore for six months since I met you at your parents' weddin' and I just can't anymore. I care 'bout you as more than just a friend and I'd understand if you didn't feel the same way. I mean I am three years older than you and I'm the son of an alcoholic who managed to kill himself with his drinkin'. I wouldn't be my first choice either." He rambled.

She looked him dead in his eyes. "Shut up, just shut up and stop talking about yourself that way." She didn't know what else to do or what to say to him so she did the one thing she knew would come through loud and clear. "Jimmy, please take your hat off."

JC removed his hat and sat it in the bed of the truck. He couldn't deny her anything that she asked of him when she said his given name like that it just sent a spark through him. He pulled her to him and planted a passionate lingering kiss on her lips. That said more than any words either of them could have come up with would have said.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I'm done putting you through the slow torture with Maddie and JC. I still have plenty of good stuff and twists that I can keep you entertained with. I know a lot of you have been looking forward to this for a long time and I hope I did it justice. Until next time please review.


	51. Chapter 51

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are I Feel a Sin Comin' on by The Pistol Annies, Pledge Allegiance to the Hag by Eric Church, Momma's Broken Heart, by Miranda Lambert, Drink a Beer by Luke Bryan, Over You by Miranda Lambert, and I Cross My Heart by George Strait.

* * *

Chapter 51

Dallas

" _I feel a sin comin' on. I feel a right that's about to go wrong."_ Sadie sang out to the crowd.

" _I got a shiver down to the bone. I feel a sin comin' on."_ Scarlett added her voice to the song.

" _I gotta buzz in my brain. Drunk on a love goin' down like champagne."_ Maddie sang.

" _I gotta feelin' it's gonna leave a lipstick stain and I'll be the only one to blame."_ Layla came in.

" _And you can see it all over my face. Sweet temptation all over the place. Give me tall dark and handsome mix it up with somethin' strong. I feel a sin comin' on."_ The four sang together along with Daphne. Maddie played the bluesy licks on her guitar.

" _Please Jesus don't hold me back. I know it ain't mine, but I want it so bad."_ Juliette joined them on stage for the night since she was in town with Luke's tour.

" _The smoke and the whiskey's got me feelin' easy. And the lights are all fadin' to black."_ Rayna wailed.

" _And you can see it all over my face. Sweet temptation all over the place. Give me tall dark and handsome mix it up with somethin' strong. I feel a sin comin' on."_ The ladies sang in unison.

" _And you can see it."_

" _And you can see it."_ Sadie wailed out.

" _All over my face."_

" _All over my face."_ Maddie showed off her range.

" _Sweet temptation all over the place. Give me tall dark and handsome mix it up with somethin' strong. I feel a sin comin' on. I feel a sin comin' on."_

"How ya'll doin' tonight, Dallas?" Rayna amped up the crowd.

"It's my pleasure to introduce you to the Angels of the Angels and Outlaws tour." Juliette took over. "We have Maddie and Daphne Claybourne, Layla Grant, Scarlett O'Connor, Sadie Stone, and Ms. Rayna Jaymes."

The crowd roared with approval.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

They let JC kick it off tonight since it was his hometown crowd.

" _There's a little dive on a dead end road called the Cross Eyed Cricket Waterin' Hole where you can hear the sound of a steel guitar and gettin' loud and rowdy with PBR. But at the top of every hour man you can hear a pin drop when ol' Jack drops in a quarter and play Merle on the jukebox and we stop."_ JC pumped the crowd up with a new song he'd just written for his album. He winked at Maddie at the Cross Eyed Cricket line.

"Sadie, did you see that?" Rayna whispered to her friend.

"I saw it there may be hope for those two yet. I plan to pry a little later and find out what went on between the two of them last night." Sadie replied.

" _And tip our hats and raise our glasses of cold, cold beer. They say country's fadin', but we're still wavin' that flag round here. And when it's time to go you know you're welcome back where the people pledge allegiance to the Hag."_

" _When the weekend comes and the weather's clear there's a hotspot fifteen miles from here. Where you can always find a few dusty trucks with the windows down and the radio up. We sit there poppin' tops shootin' bull and singin' songs, but you can bet your boots that when Haggard comes on."_

" _We tip our hats," JC tipped his cowboy hat. "And raise our glasses of cold, cold beer. They say country's fadin', but we're still wavin' that flag round here. And when it's time to go you know you're welcome back where the people pledge allegiance to the Hag."_

" _One of these days when my time has come you can take me back to where I'm from. Put me on a westbound train and ship me off in the pourin' rain."_ Deacon sang softly.

" _Don't cry for me when I'm gone just put a quarter in the jukebox and sing me back home. And tip your hats and raise your glasses of cold, cold beer. They say country's fadin', but we keep wavin' that flag round here. And I know it'll keep on comin' back long as people pledge allegiance where folks still pledge allegiance I pledge allegiance to the Hag."_ JC finished his song.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

" _I cut my bangs with some rusty kitchen scissors I screamed his name 'til the neighbors called the cops. I numbed the pain at the expense of my liver. Don't know what I did next all I know I couldn't stop. Word got around to the barflies and the Baptists my momma's phone started ringin' off the hook. I can hear her know sayin' she ain't gonna have it. Don't matter how you feel it only matters how you look."_ Maddie launched into a song she and JC had written about her breakup with Colt.

" _Go and fix your makeup girl it's just a breakup run and hide your crazy and start actin' like a lady cause I raised you better gotta keep it together even when you fall apart, but this ain't my momma's broken heart."_ Daphne came in on chorus as usual.

" _Wish I could be just a little less dramatic like a Kennedy when Camelot went down in flames. Leave it to me to be holdin' the matches when the fire trucks show up and there's nobody else to blame. Can't get revenge and keep a spotless reputation. Sometimes revenge is a choice you've gotta make. My momma came from a softer generation where you get grip and bite your lip just to save a little face."_

"You write this with her?" Deacon turned to JC with an arched eyebrow.

"I may be a little guilty of that." JC chuckled.

"Between you and me it's perfect. It's Rayna to a T." Deacon laughed.

" _Go and fix your makeup girl it's just a breakup run and hide your crazy and start actin' like a lady. Cause I raised you better gotta keep it together even when you fall apart, but this ain't my momma's broken heart."_

" _Powder you nose, paint your toes, line your lips and keep them closed. Cross your legs dot your eye don't ever let 'em see you cry."_

" _Go and fix your makeup well it's just a breakup run and hide your crazy and start actin' like a lady. Cause I raised you better gotta keep it together even when you fall apart. Well, this ain't my momma's broken heart."_

"Cute, Madison, really cute. I hope like hell that made you feel better, because you've got a hit on your hands." Rayna told her when she came off the stage.

"You really think so?" Maddie asked brightly.

"Oh, I know so." Rayna replied.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Now, a lot of people might not know this, but seventeen years ago we lost our drummer in an accident and I lost my best friend. So, tonight with ya'll's permission we are gonna pay tribute to him. It's only fittin' since he was a Dallas native. Vinny, this one is for you, buddy." Deacon looked over at the side of the stage at Vince's parents.

" _When I got the news today I didn't know what to say so I just hung up the phone. I took a walk to clear my head and this is where the walkin' led. Can't believe you're really gone. Don't feel like goin' home. So, I'm gonna sit right here on the edge of this pier and watch the sunset disappear and drink a beer."_ Deacon closed his eyes as he sang.

" _Funny how the good ones go too soon, but the good lord knows the reasons why I guess. Sometimes the greater plan is kinda hard to understand right now it don't make sense. I can't make it all make sense. So, I'm gonna sit right here on the edge of this pier. Watch the sunset disappear and drink a beer."_

" _So long my friend until we meet again. I'll remember you and all the times that we used to. Sit right here on the edge of this pier. Watch sunset disappear and drink a beer. Drink a beer. Drink a beer."_ He cleared the tears from his eyes quickly.

"Vince Grayson wasn't just my drummer he was like the big brother I never asked for, but got anyway. This next one Deacon and I wrote together and there's no way that either of us could make it through this song alone, so we are gonna sing it for you together." Rayna came out on stage and sat down on a stool next to Deacon.

Deacon started strumming his guitar. _"Weather man said it's gonna snow by now I should be used to the cold."_

" _Mid February shouldn't be so scary it was only December. I still remember the presents the tree you and me."_ Rayna sang softly.

" _But you went away how dare you? I miss you. They say I'll be ok, but I'm not goin' to ever get over you."_ They sang together.

" _Livin' alone here in this place I think of you and I'm not afraid."_ She sang.

" _Your favorite records make me feel better as you sing along with every song. I know you didn't mean to give them to me."_ He picked up.

" _But you went away. How dare you? I miss you. They say I'll be ok, but I'm not goin' to ever get over you. It really sinks in you know? When I see it in stone. Cause you went away. How dare you? I miss you. They say I'll be ok, but I'm goin' to ever get over you."_ Deacon played them out softly.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

" _If I could then I would go back in time yeah baby. Back before he left you high and dry and maybe I could you should you a thing or two about what good love is supposed to do. He left you scared to love again, but where you're at ain't where you've been."_ JC strummed his guitar and looked into Maddie's eyes as he sang. They were covering This duet together. It had originally been Will and Layla's song, but since it had never been recorded Rayna had wanted them to do it.

" _Let me dry your eyes and heal the hurt inside. If you're willin' to baby got a pocket full promise. Got it if you want it got a whole lot more to give if your heart can handle it."_ He was letting her know that it was ok to trust him with her heart that he would keep it safe.

" _I've been broke I've been used can't take another go round honey. It's gonna take a little time you know the right kind of loving. If you ain't in any kind of love. Baby that's the least of my worries. So, now I plan and laid it all out there. If I'm gonna start guess I've gotta start somewhere."_ Maddie looked back into his eyes.

" _You can dry my eyes and heal the hurt inside if you're willin' to baby. Got a pocket full of promise got it if you want got a whole lot more to give. If your heart can handle it."_ She felt herself surrender to him.

" _We have all the pieces all the things we need to pit back together again."_ They sang soulfully to each other.

" _I'm in," She sang._

" _If you're in," He answered._

" _Well, I'm in."_ She crooned.

" _Let me dry your eyes."_ He moved a little closer to her.

" _And heal the hurt inside."_ She took a step in his direction.

" _If you're willin' to baby got a pocket full of promise got it if you want it got a whole lot more to give."_

" _If you heart."_

" _If your heart."_

" _If your heart can handle it. If your heart can handle it."_

" _My heart can handle it."_ She put her hand on his shoulder at the end of the song.

JC and Layla played the song that they had written together as well.

"Jimmy, that was freakin' amazin'." JC's older sister Hailey wrapped him in a big hug after the show was over.

"Thanks, Hales, it meant a lot that you were here to hear it." JC hugged her back.

"God, that brought back memories of seein' Vince play. He was a damn good drummer. But every tends to forget that he made a pretty good front man too." Hailey replied.

"Say, I just had the best idea ever." Max exclaimed. "We should all hit the Rusty Spur. It's basically a sport's bar so there is no age limit and they don't really check IDs even when they should."

"I think that sounds like a great idea." Deacon agreed.

"Yeah, the nanny can sit in the room with Daphne and the boys." Rayna added.

"What do you say to that Juliette?" Avery asked his wife.

"I say let's go for it." Juliette smiled at him.

"Rayna, can the sitter handle Cadence too?" Avery asked.

"With Daphne there to help out of course. You know that you're welcome to use the nanny any time that you need to." Rayna assured him.

"Let's wrap up this post show press stuff so we can get out of here." Sadie was excited to get out and just have a good time.

* * *

"Will, Will Lexington?" A tall man with an athletic build called to out to Will backstage. He had thick, curly black hair and smoky gray eyes. He was dressed in a tight gray t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

Will turned around when he heard his name called. "Yeah that's me." There was something familiar about the man to him, but he couldn't put his finger on where he had seen him before.

"Booth McCoy, though you probably know me better by my nickname, Shooter." He extended his hand to Will.

Will took his hand and shook it. "I know who you are. You play for the Predators. I also know enough about you to know that off the ice your nickname is Mack and no one actually calls you Booth."

Mack flashed him a smile that showed off his pearly, white teeth. "That's me. We were in town playing the Stars and I thought I'd come by and catch your show. I have to say that you don't disappoint at all. Luke Wheeler really lost out when he kicked you off his tour. Actually, I saw you when you played Mobile and Atlanta too. I've just now worked up the courage to say hi to you."

"Hey, man, you should have said somethin' sooner. I would have saved you the price of a backstage pass." Will smiled back.

"I thought I would admire you from afar for awhile before I made my move." Mack joked and pushed his hand through his hair. There was no question that he was gay he'd just refused to confirm or deny it to the media.

"Like what you've seen so far?" Will felt a little twinge of guilt at being so flirtatious because things between him and Kevin were up in the air.

"I have to say that I haven't had a complaint one. It's been worth every damn penny that I've paid out for backstage passes." Mack let his eyes drink Will's toned body in.

"Well, I'm glad to hear it." Will took off his hat and nodded his head. "I'm really flattered and all, but."

"You're with Kevin Bicks. I know that. That's why I haven't been more aggressive. I guess I'll be seeing you at the next tour stop that coincides with the team I'm playing that day." Mack went to walk away.

Will had a moment of indecision before he made a bold move. "Hey, Mack, we're all gettin' ready to hit a local waterin' hole you should join us. That is if you have time and you won't get into any trouble with your coaches."

"Yeah, I'd love to tag along if you don't mind." Mack agreed.

"We don't mind at all the more the merrier around here. This tour is like one big family." Will put a friendly hand on his shoulder.

"Sounds like a plan to me then. I'm just using you to meet Deacon Claybourne anyway." Mack joked around with him.

"Hell, Deacon will get a big kick out of that. He's still gettin' used to this bein' a front man thing." Will bit his lip. He felt himself on the cusp of doing something that he really shouldn't be doing.

"I've listened to About a Girl so many times during my training sessions that I probably know the words to all the songs better than he does. What can I say? I'm a romantic and Rayna Jaymes is one lucky woman to have a man that loves her that much. The whole thing plays like a love letter to her." Mack made conversation.

"That's what I said too. That's how the album got its name. I told him all his songs were about a girl." Will laughed. He felt more comfortable with him than he had with Kevin in a long time.

"Mind sharing a cab with me to this bar? Or are you afraid that there will be a scandal?" Mack licked his lips playfully.

"I can do you one better, the tour has a whole armada of SUVs we can just use one of those and no one will pay it a second thought." Will offered.

"Even better." Mack agreed.

* * *

"Holy fuckin' shit, Jimmy. We've got to hang out with you and your new friends more often. Not only is Will Lexington your best friend, but we are havin' beers with one of the best hockey players in the league." Max's jaw hung open.

"Max, would you like Jimmy to go pass them a note from you that says check yes or no?" Hailey joked with her husband.

"At least then you could brag that you have a real manly man. It'd take one tough motherfucker to handle Shooter McCoy." Max winked at her.

"Jimmy, take him out on tour with you. I'm beggin' you. I can't even stand him sometimes." Hailey pleaded with her younger brother playfully.

"Hailey, be nice Pop had to pay him off to get him to marry you." JC zinged her. "Max, play it cool I'll get you an introduction in a minute."

"Fuck off, Jimmy." Hailey flipped him off.

"You know me I'm cool as hell." Max assured him.

"Deacon, Rayna, I got a new friend that wants to meet ya'll." Will walked up to their table with Mack.

"No introductions needed. Shooter McCoy, it's damn good to meet you. You are arguably the best center in the NHL." Deacon reached out to shake his hand.

Mack shook his hand. "Please call me Mack. Shooter is just a nickname the media came up with. It looks like you and I have a little mutual admiration going on. I've listened to About a Girl so many times it's almost embarrassing."

"I get that a lot. I didn't think it'd take off the way that it did. I'm always happy to hear that someone likes it." Deacon gave him a friendly smile.

Mack pointed at Rayna. "You are one lucky woman. It's obvious from his songs how much that man loves you."

"I know I am. Between you and me he's pretty lucky that I put up with him." Rayna winked.

"Hey, Will! Let's get a game of darts goin' see if the hockey player can hit that target." JC called out from across the bar.

"What do you say? Wanna help me shut my big mouthed friend up?" Will asked.

"I'm in." Mack said without hesitation.

"Deacon, Gunnar, Avery? Ya'll in too?" JC asked.

"Hell yeah," Came the rowdy response from the other three men.

"So why are we sittin' here studying Maddie?" Juliette asked looking between Sadie and Rayna.

"We are tryin' to figure out what is goin' on between her and JC." Sadie answered her.

"That should be obvious they like each other. The way I heard it when she broke up with Colt in Atlanta JC held him up against the wall by his throat for sayin' she was a whore just like her momma." Juliette relayed what little information she had.

"Teenagers these days I swear they are horrible. Jimmy got Vince's temper. The only difference is Vince would have punched him." Hailey added to the conversation.

"He would have had Will and Maddie and not calmed him down. Will told Gunnar about it and my boyfriend has to tell me everything that he knows." Scarlett informed them.

"Avery said that wasn't the first time that JC and Colt had words. Apparently when Deacon played the Opry. Colt told him to back off Maddie and JC had some choice words for him that I don't even want to repeat." Juliette was more than happy to add to the gossip.

"If I said or did half the shit with my mouth that Jimmy does with his, our momma would have taken a switch to me." Hailey rolled her eyes.

"If my daddy had known half the things I did with my mouth that weren't related to singing or talking when it came to Deacon he would have thrown me out long before he did." Rayna chuckled.

"Eww, that's gross, that is my uncle I don't need to know these things." Scarlett made a disgusted face. "Also, Aunt Ray, don't be so eager about those two together. That's Will's little silver tongued wing man. He's gotten him more guys than I care to think about and he's not even gay. I shudder to think about the things he can talk my sweet baby cousin into."

"Probably the same things that Deacon was talkin' me into at that age. He's a good boy, he always treats her like a gentleman and that's all I can ask for." Rayna shrugged.

"Ya'll are over thinkin' this thing. There is a much simpler way to find out what's goin' on between them without havin' to ask and decode surly teenager." Juliette lit up.

"Yeah, we have you ask you're basically still a surly teenager." Rayna quipped.

"You love me and you know it. Just hang tight and I will be right back." Juliette got up and fed some money into the jukebox. I Cross My Heart started to play.

 _Our love was unconditional_

 _We knew it from the start_

 _I see it in your eyes_

 _You could feel it from my heart_

"May I have this dance?" Deacon walked over and offered Rayna his hand.

"Of course you may." Rayna took his hand.

Gunnar took Scarlett's hand. "Shall we?" He asked with his usual dopey grin.

"We shall." Scarlett agreed.

"We never got our first dance." Juliette was surprised to see Avery's hand, but she took it with a smile.

Max just grabbed Hailey around the waist and led her out to the dance floor.

"If there's anythin' I hate to see it's a pretty woman sittin' all alone watchin' everyone else dance." JC's brother Bobby told Sadie.

"Well, when you ask so nicely there is no way that I can refuse." Sadie smiled and took his hand.

"Maddie, would you like to dance with me?" JC took off his hat and bowed.

"I'd love to dance with you, Jimmy." Maddie blushed and took his hand.

 _From here on after_

 _Let's stay the way we where_

 _And share all the love and laughter_

 _That a lifetime will allow_

The couples all pressed up close to each other on the dance floor and swayed along to the music.

"Ray, I'm sorry as hell that I was off on a bender and missed this in person." Deacon apologized for a gig he had missed when he was drunk.

"You're here now and that's all that matters to me, babe." Rayna kissed him to silence him.

 _I cross my heart_

 _And promise to_

 _Give all I've got to give_

 _To make all your dreams come true_

 _In all the world_

 _You'll never find_

 _A love as true as mine_

"Not bad for a first dance considering how badly things could have ended up for us." Avery wrapped his arms around Juliette's waist.

"I don't think I've thanked you yet for not givin' up on me. Thank you for lovin' me enough to fight for me even when I wouldn't fight for myself." Juliette kissed him tenderly.

 _You will always be the miracle_

 _That makes my life complete_

 _And as long as there's still breath in me_

 _I'll make yours just as sweet_

"You have no idea how happy I am that we found our way back to each other, Scarlett. I was stupid and I was a bonehead, but you waited for me and that means more to me than you will ever know." Gunnar whispered to her as they danced.

"I love you, you big awkward dummy. Of course I waited for you. You're the only man that I want to hold me and twirl me around on a dance floor." Scarlett buried her face in his neck and inhaled his scent.

 _As we look into the future_

 _It's as far as we can see_

 _So let's make each tomorrow_

 _Be the best that it can be_

"You're pretty light on your feet for a cowboy." Sadie was enjoying Bobby's embrace. He was the first man she'd let in since the whole Pete debacle.

"You're not so bad yourself." Bobby complimented her.

 _I cross my heart_

 _And promise to_

 _Give all I've got to give_

 _To make all your dreams come true_

 _In all the world_

 _You'll never find_

 _A love as true as mine_

"Do you envy that?" Mack inclined his head in the direction of the dance floor.

"Yes and no. Sometimes it just feel like I'm not gay enough for Kevin. I blew up everythin' to be with him and to prove my love to him, but he lets his friends judge me for not bein' some sort of gay icon and I'm not so sure he doesn't feel the same way." Will admitted.

"Why do you think I won't confirm my sexuality to the press? Bein' gay is just part of who I am it's not all of who I am. You seem to understand that and if Kevin doesn't understand that about you then it's his loss." Mack advised him.

 _And if along the way we find a day_

 _It starts to storm_

 _You've got the promise of my love_

 _To keep you warm_

JC sang softly in Maddie's ear as they danced their bodies pressed close together. He had his arms around her waist and her arms were around his neck.

 _In all the world_

 _You'll never find_

 _A love as true as mine_

 _A love as true as mine_

They were still swaying together long after the song ended and they looked at each other like they were the only two people in the room. JC took his hat off and dipped his head to kiss her lips sweetly. "As long as you're my girl you will always be safe, cherished, and wanted." He mumbled against her lips.

"Please don't hurt me. I could take it from anyone, but you." She begged him.

"I promise you that I will do my best to never hurt you on purpose." He swore to her.

"Well, I guess that answers that question." Sadie commented to Rayna.

"I guess it does. It's not like I didn't see this comin' months ago. I'll be damned if I'm not torn between thinkin' they're cute and bein' a little sad that my baby girl is growin up." Rayna replied.

"Ya'll are welcome." Juliette injected smugly.

"Juliette, why don't you just go bedazzle you some sparkly pants or somethin'?" Rayna quipped playfully.

"Please, I have people who do that for me. And you're the one who should worry about the horny teenage boy with his lips all over your daughter right now." Juliette joked back.

"In fifteen years that's gonna be Cadence and I'm gonna remember this." Rayna warned her.

"In fifteen years that's gonna be Deac or Jayme with his tongue down my baby girl's throat. I don't know whether to be grossed out by that or to be a little relieved." Juliette shuddered.

"Now you know how it feels. Welcome to motherhood it can be very trying at times." Rayna smirked.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know I may get crucified for this, but I'm taking Will's love life in a different direction. I just don't feel like he should have to stick with the first gay man that he was with after coming out and I'm about to have some fun with him and Mack together I promise you that this is a good twist that you're gonna like. I have a whole lot more twists headed your way as soon as I get them off this tour. I also promise I will work in some music from the Exes soon this story needs that and I've been slacking a little in that department, but now that I have Maddie and JC together I can focus on other big stuff that's been in the works. Until next time please review.


	52. Chapter 52

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is Beer For My Horses by Toby Keith.

* * *

Chapter 52

Nashville

The Angels and Outlaws tour was on a week long break after the solid three weeks of shows they had just played. Everyone was in need of some well earned rest and recuperation before they hit the road again. They wouldn't have another break until the Fourth of July weekend.

"Looks like we have a winner here, momma. Not only are both the boys fans of their rice cereal they both like to have peaches mixed in with it. This is the first mornin' I haven't gotten food spit back in my face." Deacon reported. He used Jaymes' bib to wipe his mouth and he repeated the process with Little Deacon. Both boys sat in their highchairs content to have their daddy's undivided attention for the moment.

"That's what momma likes to hear. Just as soon they are finished with breakfast daddy can get them cleaned up and changed because we have a full day ahead of us. We have to go over to the new house and see how much progress the contractor has made and we need to go into the office to make sure that Aunt Tandy and Uncle Bucky haven't run us into the ground." Rayna replied.

"I think these boys and a certain little Squirt we know and love have some mawmaw and pawpaw time scheduled while we do that. Momma and Lamar are both threatenin' to take us to court for visitation rights to their beloved grandbabies." Deacon joked. He fed both the boys another bite of their cereal.

"You mean to tell me that your momma and my daddy get along that well?" Rayna questioned him with an arched eyebrow.

"They do. It's shockin' I know. Still not as big of a shock as the fact that Bev and Tandy get along, but hey as long as it works I'm not gonna argue with it." Deacon wiped their mouths again.

"Maddie complains that it's gross when mom breast feeds them. I think that cereal stuff they eat is even more gross." Daphne made a disgusted face. She would change diapers and suffer through being spit up on without complaint, but she drew the line at feeding them their cereal.

"Oh, how I love my two girls. My life would be so dull without them." Deacon shook his head and laughed.

"Speaking of Maddie, where is she?" Rayna asked.

"She's over at Scarlett's place." Deacon answered like it was no big deal.

"Over at Scarlett's place where her boyfriend happens to live and where Scarlett isn't half the time because she's with Gunnar at his house." Rayna rolled her eyes. That man could be so damn dense sometimes that it wasn't funny.

"Would you relax? Scarlett is there. I called and made sure of that myself before I let Maddie go over there. I know what we were doin' at that age and that's our daughter, so I don't exactly trust her when she tells me that her cousin is at home." Deacon gave her a look that said she should have known better than to think so little of him.

"Not that that is much of a comfort either. What were we doin' with my daddy right down the hall?" Rayna pointed out to him.

"What are you guys talking about?" Daphne looked between them like they had both lost their minds.

"Playin' checkers and writin' songs that's what we were doin'." Deacon gave her a pointed look. He really didn't want to have to explain sex to sweet, innocent Daphne.

"Because Deacon John Claybourne is as pure as the driven snow and he could never do any wrong." Beverly commented sarcastically as she came in through the side door followed by June.

"Aunt Bev!" Daphne ran to Beverly and hugged her.

"Daphne! Look at how big you've gotten in just a few weeks. Your momma and daddy have to stop keepin' you all to themselves." Beverly hugged her back just as warmly. For whatever reason those two seemed to share a bond.

"Hello, mawmaw's two little men. You have both gotten so big too." June kissed both boys.

"They are in the process of being fed. If they don't want to eat too much more don't worry about it. They will still take a bottle later. Deac will eat more than Jayme will, so if he acts like he's still starving put some cereal in his bottle and he will be fine." Rayna informed her.

"Rayna, I raised two of my own that are Claybourne's I know how to handle them. You and Deacon John just go do whatever it is you need to do. Everythin' here will be just fine. Lamar should be here any minute. He was havin' his driver stop on the way over to pick up somethin' that I asked him to get last night." June shooed them away.

"June, I don't know what kind of power it is you wield over my daddy, but I thank you for it. You make him a much more pleasant person to be around." Rayna told her gratefully.

"Where's Maddie?" Beverly asked.

"Maddie's got a new boyfriend and she spends all of her time with him now. But, he's totally nice and he takes me on dates too." Daphne spilled everything that she knew.

"Jimmy?" June questioned.

"That'd be the one, momma. Alright, we are gonna get out of your hair and go deal with some stuff, but we will be back later. Ya'll behave, for mawmaw, pawpaw, and Aunt Bev. If ya'll wanna see Maddie you're just gonna have to give her a call and hope that she answers." Deacon informed them. "Bev, while I'm thinkin' 'bout how's your time in the studio goin'?"

"It's goin' pretty good. I really like that Kevin guy you've got me writin' with and the band that you scrounged up for me is pretty damn good. We'll see how it goes." Beverly replied smilingly. They had finally gotten her on the right drug cocktail, so she wasn't as much of a bitch anymore.

"That's good I'm glad to hear it. Anyway, we are gonna hit the road. If ya'll need anythin' just give us a call. And if you have any questions about Outlaw or Rebel here Squirt will probably be able to answer them for you." Deacon was happy to see his sister doing so well. None of the other institutions she'd been in had done this well for her.

"We will see ya'll later." Rayna waved as she and Deacon left.

"Now that they are gone we just have to wait for your pawpaw to get here and we are gonna go on a picnic." June began to clean the boys up.

* * *

"I'd say that things are coming along nicely wouldn't you?" Rayna held on to Deacon's arm as they strolled around their new property.

"Yeah, they got your swimmin' pool and hot tub in. They've got the new barn built up. And things inside look like they are almost finished. I think everythin' might be ready for us to move in by the time we get off the tour if not sooner." Deacon agreed with her.

"I'm really pleased with the way our office and the studio turned out. The girls are gonna love their rooms and I'm absolutely in love with the boys' nursery." She gushed.

"As long as you're happy with it so am I. I'm just glad to be gettin' outta Belle Meade." He replied. He reached for his phone when it buzzed in his pocket. "Deacon Claybourne." He answered professionally. "Yeah, I understand I'll be right down." He said after listening to what his caller had to say.

"What was that about?" She asked.

"I've gotta get down to the rehab center somethin' 'bout Paul. As much as I don't wanna deal with it I can't pawn it off on momma or Bev." He sighed loudly.

When they got to the rehab center Paul sat in his recliner in a highly agitated state.

"Paul, what the hell is goin' on with you? I just got a call that said you were about to take out an orderly or some shit." Deacon demanded of his father.

"The son of a bitch wouldn't give me my cigarettes or my candy bars. I know that I should still have a bunch left because Tandy just dropped some off for me last week." Paul bitched.

"Ok, just calm down, Paul. I'll stay here with you while Deacon goes and gets to the bottom of what's going on." Rayna spoke soothingly to him.

Deacon walked down the hall to where the orderlies hung out. "Hey, I'm Deacon Claybourne, and I understand that there is some kind of problem with my father Paul." He spoke to the guy that looked like he was in charge.

"We had a little issue today. He walked up here wanting his daily ration of cigarettes and candy bars, but we wouldn't give them to him." The man explained.

"Why not? Is his blood sugar up? Is his smokin' somehow messin' with his liver transplant?" Deacon questioned. If he didn't know himself better he would swear that he sounded concerned for his father's well being.

"No, his blood sugar has been very good and he is doing really well with his transplant." The man replied.

"Then why the hell won't you give him his stuff?" Deacon asked.

"Well, you see one of our orderlies has been sneaking his candy bars and cigarettes and using them to gamble with the other orderlies on the night shift so he doesn't have any left." He answered.

"Are you fuckin' kiddin' me right now?" Deacon asked in disbelief. "Don't answer that. I really don't want you to answer that question. I'm payin' your people ten grand a month to look after my father and I pay extra so he can have his luxuries like his cable tv, his candy bars, and his cigarettes. And you people are just gamblin' with his stuff like it's yours to give away." He fumed.

"Mr. Claybourne, I'm sorry and I assure you that those orderlies have been dealt with accordingly." The man promised him.

"That's not good enough for me. Here is what's gonna happen. One of you is gonna go out right now and buy two cases of snickers bars and two cartons of Marlboro Reds. When you've done that you're gonna bring them to me in my father's room and we are gonna lock 'em up in there. His nurses can be in charge of rationing 'em out to him since clearly your people can't be trusted." Deacon laid down the law.

"Whatever you say, Mr. Claybourne." The man agreed readily. He'd already seen Paul's temper on display if Deacon's was anything like that he didn't want any part of it.

By the time Deacon returned to his father's room he was in a much calmer state. Rayna sat next to him showing him pictures on her iPad that had been taken while they were out on tour.

"You get everything handled?" Rayna looked up at him.

"I did and let's just say I know why he was throwin' one hell of a fit for a change." Deacon crossed his arms over his chest. "The man is clean and sober for probably the first time in his life, so he can't have his whiskey. But he can have his damn candy bars and cigarettes and those orderlies have been treatin' his stuff like it's theirs to gamble with."

"Oh, yeah, I can see where that would piss him off." She agreed.

"Those no good son of a bitches." Paul grumbled.

"Paul, pictures," She refocused his attention before he could get his temper worked up again.

"I know I have to work on my temper they have me in anger management." Paul admitted. "Those girls of yours sure are somethin' special. That Maddie she looks just like her daddy and so do those two little boys who are gettin' so damn big. Rayna, I see so much of you in Daphne that it ain't funny. Ya'll are gonna have to be sittin' out on the front porch with shotguns to keep the boys away from those two."

"Too late for that when it comes to Maddie she's already havin' boyfriends. I think I got the little one talked into not datin' 'til I'm dead if I'm lucky or at least not datin' a guy like me." Deacon made conversation.

"Babe, go call your manager and tell him to bring a brand new iPad up here. I want Paul to have a way to keep up with the tour and see pictures of the kids." Rayna told her husband. She knew that there were some things that could never be forgiven, but she also knew for her husband to heal completely he had to finish making his peace with his father whatever way that turned out.

"Yeah, sure, babe." To both their surprise Deacon didn't argue with her he just stepped out into the hallway to make the phone call. "Hey, Rusty, it's Deacon. I know I've been workin' you like a dog lately, but I need a favor from you. I want you to use the company card to buy the most state of the art iPad and Mac Book that they have out on the market and I also want you to buy a lockbox that comes with a key. Among his other talents my father happens to be a safe cracker. I need you to do that now and bring them up to the rehab center where he's at. After that I promise you that you're free to do whatever it is you want to do with your time."

"Yeah, it's no problem at all, Deacon. I'll get all that stuff and I will be right up there. As a matter of fact I think we have some brand new iPads and laptops at the office I'll just grab those and it'll save me a trip to the Apple store. I'll stop by the hardware store and get a lockbox that's the size of a medium sized toolbox." Rusty replied.

"Thanks, Rusty, I don't know what I'd do without you and I don't know what I did before I had to you to run my errands for me." Deacon said before he hung up the phone.

* * *

" _I know you're rollin' down the runway outta LAX takin' off to wherever you're headed next. It doesn't matter that I'm nowhere near that jet, baby I'm on it."_ Will was playing a small show at one of the local bars. He thought it would be good to get out and perform on his own again without the buffer of the tour to protect him. All of his friends were in attendance along with Kevin. They gotten Maddie and JC in by saying that they were part of the road crew.

" _You this memory ain't gonna leave you alone. You can try to drown it out with your headphones, but it doesn't really matter what comes on, baby I'm on it."_ He was playing one of the songs off of the first album he'd put out with Edgehill. It wasn't as good as the stuff that he'd written with Kevin for his Highway 65 album, but it was a start.

" _Girl, you thought I was gone when you left me, but it's gonna be hard to forget me. Keep tellin' yourself that it's over. The only over I'll be is over your shoulder. I ain't gonna fade away with the taillights. Down with the moon, baby, up with the sunrise. Any song, any scene, any old side street. When you think you're rid of me there I'll be."_ He smiled at a group of college aged girls that were standing in the front row and they smiled back up at him.

" _On the wind in the fall when the leaves turn brown, but it's still warm enough to put your windows down. Every cobblestone corner in that college town, baby I'm on it."_ His smile faltered a little bit when the girls pushed the young man that was with them to the front and he smiled at Will flirtatiously.

" _When you're out at a bar with some new guy and you end up in his arms at the end of the night. I oughta be the furthest thing from your mind, but, baby I'm on it."_ He nodded his head in Kevin's direction and kept playing his song without losing his stride. This is exactly what he hadn't wanted to happen. He just wanted to live his life and make his music not be seen as some gay icon.

" _Girl, you thought I was gone when you left me, but it's gonna be hard to forget me. Keep tellin' yourself that it's over. The only over I'll be is over your shoulder. I ain't gonna fade away with the taillights. Down with the moon, baby, up with the sunrise. Any song, any scene, any old side street. When you think you're rid of me there I'll be."_ Kevin smiled back at him encouragingly.

" _Girl you thought I was gone when you left me, but it's gonna be hard to forget me. Keep tellin' yourself that it's over. The only over I'll be is over your shoulder. I ain't gonna fade away with the taillights. Down with the moon, baby, up with the sunrise. And song, any scene, any old side street. When you think you're rid of me there I'll be."_ He took a deep breath to keep himself together. He wanted so badly to be what Kevin needed him to be, but he just didn't think that he could do it anymore.

" _On any sunny summer white sand beach. Any prayer when you just can't fall asleep. Anywhere the road you're on might lead. Baby I'm on it."_ He finished the song.

"Right now, I wanna ask my best buddy to come up here and do a song that we just wrote together while we were out on the road with the Angels and Outlaws tour." He spoke into the mic. "JC, get your ass up here, brother." He needed backup before he had a panic attack.

JC joined him up on stage. "Thanks for the invite, Will. When you ask me so nicely like that it's pretty hard to refuse." He joked.

"Alright, clown, tone it down some. We gonna sing this song or not?" Will joked back with him.

"Let's play it for 'em. Texas forever." JC whooped into his mic and picked up a guitar.

"Texas forever." Will replied in kind.

" _Well, a man come on the six o'clock news said somebody's been shot, somebody's been abused. Somebody blew up a building, somebody stole a car. Somebody got away somebody didn't get too far, yeah they didn't get too far."_ JC opened up the song.

" _Grandpappy told my pappy back in my day son a man had to answer for the wicked that he done. Take all the rope in Texas find a tall oak tree. Round up all of them bad boys. Hang 'em high in the street for all the people to see that."_ Will picked up the song here.

" _Justice is the one thing you should always find. You gotta saddle up your boys you gotta draw a hard line."_ JC sang.

" _When the gun smoke settles we'll sing a victory tune and we'll all meet back at the local saloon."_ Will crooned.

" _We'll raise up our glasses against evil forces singin' whiskey for my men beer for horses."_ They sang together. They each picked up a beer mug and toasted each other before taking a sip.

" _We got too many gangsters doin' dirty deeds."_ JC strummed his guitar. He sent a wink in Maddie's direction when a bunch of girls tried flirting with him. They hadn't gone public with their relationship because they hadn't wanted it to be cannon fodder for the media. What was theirs was theirs and they wanted it to stay that way for as long as possible.

" _Too much corruption and crime in the streets."_ Will shot an envious look in JC's direction. Not too long ago it had been him all the women had been flocking after. It wasn't that he begrudged his best friend that. It was just that he missed to having to live up to some stereotype.

" _It's time the long arm of the law put a few more in the ground."_ JC tipped the brim of his hat and executed a little hip thrust.

" _Send them all to their maker and he'll settle 'em down."_ Will tapped his boot along to the beat of the song. It hadn't been like this playing sold out arenas, but here in a more intimate setting it was like everyone expected him to behave like someone he wasn't.

" _You can bet he'll set 'em down."_ JC went an octave lower than normal for that line. _"Cause justice is the one thing you should always find. You gotta settle up your boys you gotta draw a hard line."_

" _When the gun smoke settles we'll sing a victory tune and we'll all meet back at the local saloon."_ Will sang his line again.

" _And we'll raise up our glasses against evil forces singin' whiskey for my men beer for my horses. Whiskey for my men beer for my horses."_ This time Will and JC both toasted to each other with a shot of whiskey and downed them quickly.

They stood back to back and strummed their guitars for the musical interlude both of them nodding their heads along in time with the drummer.

" _You know justice is the one thing you should always find. You gotta saddle up your boys you gotta draw a hard line. When the gun smoke settles we'll sing a victory tune and we'll all meet back at the local saloon. And we'll raise up our glasses against evil forces singin' whiskey for my men beer for my horses. Singin' whiskey for my men beer for my horses."_ They sang the whole chorus together that time.

When they finished the song the song they each did another shot of whiskey and drained what was left of their beers in one gulp. Each of them picked up a corner of a piece of fabric that lay on a stool behind them and they raised the Texan flag together.

"Texas Forever!" They exclaimed.

"Texas Forever!" Their table of friends raised their drinks and toasted them. It had been one hell of a performance.

"JC, I ever catch you flirting with another girl like that in front of me again and I can promise you that I will use my daddy's shotgun on you." Maddie told him conversationally when he returned to the table.

"Cricket, I wasn't flirtin' with any girl, but you. You're my only girl and you know that. That wink was meant for you, so that you'd know no matter how many women throw themselves at me you'll always be my one and only." JC kissed her to seal the deal.

* * *

After his set Will leaned up against the outside wall of the bar trying to collect himself. That had taken a lot more out of him than he thought it would. It was like the Will Lexington that had busted onto the country music scene so hot and heavy a year ago was dead and buried and now he had to start from scratch and craft a new image for himself.

"Will, what are you doing out here?" Kevin came out to check on his boyfriend.

"I just needed a minute to think that's all." Will replied.

"I thought that went really well." Kevin commented thinking that that was what was wrong with him.

"Yeah, I mean you saw those girls in the front row giggling and then they pushed their gay friend front and center so I could play to him." Will grumbled.

"This again, Will? That was nothing. It was no different than the hordes of women that used to throw themselves at you when they thought you were just another straight cowboy." Kevin sighed.

"It is different, Kevin. I'm not just some gay cowboy, I'm a cowboy who just so happens to be gay. My sexuality didn't change who I am as a person. I can't be the gay icon that you want me to be. I feel like you're don't get that sometimes." Will admitted to him.

"But, I guess Mack McCoy does." Kevin worked his bottom lip between his teeth.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Will demanded hotly.

"Don't play dumb with me, Will. I've seen the tabloid pictures of you two out together on at least three different tour stops. I get that you're just friends, but damn it. I'm the one who put up with you when you wouldn't leave the house for a month. And I'm the one who wrote a song with you about your father throwing you away like a piece of garbage. I can't do this with you anymore. I'm sick of it. If you couldn't handle this then you just should have stayed in the closet. I just can't go through your self loathing mood swings I'm done." Kevin told him firmly.

"You're right, you deserve better than me. You deserve someone who can be what you want them to be, but I'm not that guy. I came out of closet for you, because for the first time in my life I was actually in love, but that's just not enough." Will retorted.

"No, I guess it's not. You have a chance to make a huge difference and you're too damn scared to." Kevin called him out.

"It's not that I'm scared. It's just that it's not who I want to be. I don't want being gay to be what defines me I'm so much more than that." Will reasoned with him.

"I guess that there's nothing more for us to say here then. It's not like we saw each other anyway or went on dates with you being on tour and being too scared that a picture of us together might show up on the internet." Kevin started to walk away.

"There is somethin' left to say. Thank you, Kevin. Thank you for givin' me the courage to come out of the shadows and finally be who I am in the light of day. Thank you for lovin' me when I was a mess and for takin' care of me and for puttin' up with my bullshit as long as you did. Because of you I know that everythin' is gonna be ok. I don't have to live a lie anymore and that is thanks to you. That means more to me than you will ever know and I will always love you for that. I just can't love you the way that you want or the way that you deserve. I hope you find the guy that does that for you. But you did make me a better man than what I was and you made me a braver man. You're a good man, Kevin Bicks." Will gave him a sincerely heartfelt goodbye.

"I'm glad that I could be all that for you, Will. And you're right this between us will never work out because we both want too different things out of life. I'm so glad that I gave you the courage to find you voice and to speak your truth and I'm honored that you loved me for a little while. It's best to end it here and now on a good note as friends. If you ever need someone to write with or just a friend to talk to give me a call you know my number. I hope you find the man that loves you the way that you need to be loved too." Kevin let those words hang in the air as he turned his back and walked away from him.

"Hey, brother, I wasn't tryin' to eavesdrop I just came to check on you. You gonna be ok?" JC put his hand on Will's shoulder.

"You know what? For the first time since I came out and the world came crashin' down around me I do feel like everythin' is gonna be ok. I've got two great best friends with you and Gunnar and I've got a family with Highway Sixty-five for the first time since I was seventeen and my father threw me out on the side of the road. Come on, let's get on back inside and show 'em how us Texans do it." Will looped his arm around JC's shoulders as they headed back into the bar.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I had to end Will and Kevin on a somewhat high note to get to the good stuff with Will and Mack. Deacon seems to be softening a little towards his father and I'm not really sure how that's gonna go yet. Until next time please review.


	53. Chapter 53

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 53

Chicago

Will, Avery, and JC took the stage to open the show. JC and Avery both played hot licks on their guitars to begin the song.

" _Oh son. Around these parts ain't much to do 'cept work like a dog 'til Friday. Punch that clock and cash that check raise a little hell 'til Sunday."_ Will sang the opening verse.

" _There's a party back in the woods tonight heard through the redneck grapevine. Got a keg of beer and a bunch of girls sure enough gonna be a good time."_ Avery took the next line.

" _It's a small town throw down it's time to tallboy and let those tailgates down. And man it's on tonight ridin' 'til the mornin' light. Crank that country up loud. It's a small town throw down."_ The trio sang.

" _Oh, we 'bout to throw down son. Now we gotta field full of daisy dukes round here we know how to grow 'em. Rockin' little body and long tan legs sure ain't scared to show 'em, no."_ JC sang now.

" _Show a little somethin' girl. Somebody said them city boys ridin' round lookin' for some trouble. If the bring it cross that county line."_ Will sang again.

" _You know there's gonna be a rumble."_ All three young men sang with a lot of feeling. _"It's a small town throw down. It's time to tallboy up and let those tailgates down. And man it's on tonight ridin' 'til the mornin' light. Crank that country up loud. It's a small town throw down."_

" _C'mon."_ Will pumped the crowd up. As JC and Avery went to town on their guitars.

" _It's a small town throw down. It's time to tall boy up and let them tailgates down. And man it's on tonight ridin' 'til the mornin' light. Crank that country up loud. It's a small town throw down."_

" _It's a small town throw down. It's time to tall boy up and let them tailgates down. And man it's on tonight ridin' 'til the mornin' light. Crank that country up loud. It's a small town throw down. It's a small town throw down."_

When the guys finished the song they each cracked open a tall boy can of beer and drank from it until it was gone without taking a breath.

" _We Could be wrong, but there's somethin' 'bout thinkin' 'bout you that feels so right. We should be movin' on. We can worry 'bout that tomorrow, but not tonight."_ The Exes opened up their set.

" _Come a little closer, come a little closer, come a little closer, come a little closer. Come on honey stay a little a longer. At least until the sun comes up again. We got time for one last kiss before last call. Darlin' we got plenty far to fall."_ Gunnar and Scarlett sang back to back before turning to face each other for the next part of the song.

" _I know you're feelin' guilty."_ She sang to him seductively. Playing Chicago was always hard for her because this was the city where she had her breakdown and hid under a piano, but that seemed like a million years ago now. She felt so safe on the stage with Gunnar there beside her.

" _But not too guilty not to take you home."_ He crooned to her.

" _I, I, I, know how much you want me."_ She moved closer to him.

" _And I know you want me more than you let on."_ His face was almost touching hers as he sang that line. They bumped hips and put their backs together again.

" _Come a little close, come a little closer, come a little closer. Come on honey stay a little longer. At least until the sun comes up again. We got time for one last kiss before last call. Darlin' we got plenty far to fall."_

She danced around the stage while he played his guitar along with the rest of the band backing him up.

" _Come a little closer, come a little, come a little closer, come a little closer."_ They sang with their faces mere inches apart.

" _Come on honey stay a little longer. At least until the sun comes up again. We got time for one last kiss before last call. Darlin' we got plenty far to fall."_

She grabbed the mic and draped herself over Gunnar's shoulder so they could share it. _"Come on honey stay a little longer. At least until the sun comes up again. We got time for one last kiss before last call. Darlin' we got plenty far to fall. Darlin' we got plenty far to fall."_

As usual the pair was a hit together.

" _A red river of wine won't drown you. No amount of time can wash you away. No holy prayer's gonna save me this love affair is like a shallow grave."_ Sadie came on as the last opener before Rayna and Deacon took the stage.

" _Oooh, give a shot strong as you got baby. Cause I don't wanna feel a thing. No, no, no, no broken in two strung out on you. I gotta numb the fire flowin' through my veins. Ooh, sweet novocaine. Novocaine."_

" _I'm paralyzed I forget you. Alone and hypnotized by what you do to me. And time after time you I let you defeat me. time I found a place you can't reach me, yeah."_

" _Give me a shot strong as you baby. Cause I don't wanna feel a thing. No, no, no, no broken in two strung out on you. I've gotta numb the fire flowin' through my veins. Yeah, with sweet novocaine. Yeah, no, baby."_

" _Oooh, give me a shot strong as you got baby. Cause I don't wanna feel a thing. No, no, no, no I'm broken in two strung out on you. I've gotta numb the fire flowin' through my veins. Oh, with sweet novocaine."_ She showed off her vocal range.

" _Red river of wine won't drown you no amount of time can wash you away."_ She finished softly.

Deacon and Rayna took the stage together next even though they were supposed to be co-headlining the tour they always did a segment of duets together.

"Oh wee, how 'bout them Angels and Outlaws? They were on fire tonight. And let's not forget to mention our main openers Will Lexington, The Exes, and Sadie Stone. It looks like they just got ya'll fired up and ready to go for us." Rayna spoke to the crowd.

"Rayna might not want to admit this, but I think my Outlaws are kickin' her Angels' asses all over the charts lately. JC and Will both have singles sittin' in the top ten. And someone I know still has the number one record on the country radio charts with his wife's in second place." Deacon joked around.

Rayna rolled her eyes playfully. "He was so much humbler when he was just my bandleader. Not to mention easier to deal with because I was his boss. Even I can admit that About a Girl kicks ass and takes names. If ya'll haven't bought it yet you need to go out and get a copy." She loved being able to brag on him after all the time he had spent supporting her.

"Ray, are we gonna play some music for these people or are we gonna talk 'em to death?" Deacon smirked.

"Now, normally this is the part of the show where Mr. Big Head and I do a few duets for ya'll. I'm gonna change that up a little tonight. I wanna give him one of his Father's Day presents a little early. But to do that I'm gonna need a little help, as Deacon is always so quick to point out I mangle playin' the guitar like it's my job and I'm up for promotion. So, will ya'll help me welcome back to the stage, Mr. JC Grayson on lead guitar." Rayna got a roar of approval from the crowd.

JC walked out with his guitar slung over his back. He tipped his hat and waved to the crowd.

"What exactly am I supposed to do if he's playin' lead guitar?" Deacon asked.

"Darlin', you just need to sit right there on that stool and let me sing to you." Rayna took him by the arm and guided him to the stool. "Now, JC, if you'd please take it away." She requested sweetly.

JC started to pick out a slow tune on his guitar.

" _Oh, there's somethin' 'bout a man in black makes me wanna buy a Cadillac. Throw the top back and roll down to Jackson town. I wanna be there on the stage with you. You and could be the next rage too. Hear the crowd roar make 'em want more and kick the footlights out."_ Rayna sang softly looking at Deacon the whole time.

" _I wanna love like Johnny and June rings of fire burnin' with you. I wanna walk the line, walk the line until the end of time. I wanna love, love you that much. Cash all in give it all up. When you're gone I wanna go too like Johnny and June."_ She put her powerful voice on display with the chorus. The song had been inspired by a comment she had made to them on the night the twins had been conceived. This was also the song she had asked JC and Maddie to help her out with.

" _I wanna hold you baby right or wrong build a world around a country song. Pray a sweet prayer follow you there down in history."_ She went over and took her husband's hand. It was rare that they got to hold hands on stage, because he was normally playing guitar.

" _I wanna love like Johnny and June rings of fire burnin' with you. I wanna walk the line, walk the line until the end of time. I wanna love, love you that much. Cash all in give it all up. When you're gone I wanna go too like Johnny and June."_

" _Like Johnny and June. More than life itself no one else this here is promise. They don't make love like that anymore. Is that too much to be askin' for?"_ She stared deeply into his eyes.

" _I wanna love like Johnny and June rings of fire burnin' with you. I wanna walk the line, walk the line until the end of time. I wanna love, love you that much. Cash all in give it all up. When you're gone I wanna go too like Johnny and June."_

Deacon stared at her a little misty eyed. He loved this woman more than he could put into words and she'd just made him fall even deeper in love with her.

" _Like Johnny and June. And when we're gone there'll be no tears to cry only memories of our lives. They'll remember, remember, a love like that."_ She turned to face the crowd again after she had finished the song.

"Thank ya'll for lettin' me do that for him here. That song was inspired by a little somethin' he said to me one night. He told me he could do a mean Johnny Cash. And I told him he could be Johnny Cash all he wanted if I could be his June Carter. I also want to thank my amazin' co-writers and collaborators. JC Grayson and Maddie Claybourne. There's no way that song would have been possible if not for the two of them. I hope that one day they both figure out just what it means to love like that."

"I'm speechless, Ray, I've got no words to express how much I loved that. So, I guess I'm gonna have to do it the best way I know how and that's to bust out a song from About a Girl. JC, you're my bandleader you know this one. You just stay right where you are." Deacon had Rayna trade places with him.

He switched out his acoustic guitar for an electric guitar and started to play a bluesy number.

" _Used to spend my night out in a barroom. Liquor was the only love I've known. But you rescued me from reachin' for the bottom and brought me back from bein' too far gone."_

" _You're as smooth as Tennessee whiskey, you're as sweet as strawberry wine. You're as warm as glass of brandy and honey I stay stoned on your love all the time."_ Every word he sang was true she had saved him from drinking himself to death. As much as it pained him to admit it walking away from him was the best thing she could have done.

" _I've looked for love in all the same old places. Found the bottom of a bottle always dry. But when you poured out your heart I didn't waste it. Cause there's nothin' like your love to get me high."_ He hit a higher note than he would usually go for with the last line of that verse, but it brought the crowd to their feet.

" _You're as smooth as Tennessee whiskey, you're as sweet as strawberry wine. You're as warm as glass of brandy and honey I stay stoned on your love all the time."_

He played a bluesy guitar solo and instrumental with the backing of the band before he sang again.

" _You're as smooth as Tennessee whiskey, you're as sweet as strawberry wine. You're as warm as glass of brandy and honey I stay stoned on your love all the time."_

" _You're as smooth as Tennessee whiskey, Tennessee whiskey, Tennessee whiskey. You're as smooth as Tennessee whiskey, Tennessee whiskey, Tennessee whiskey."_

Rayna actually had to wipe tears from her eyes when he finished playing. She'd heard the song played on his album when she'd listened to it and she'd heard him play it on stage before, but this was the first time that he'd ever sang it to her.

"Now if ya'll don't mind we are gonna close down this show in style as a family like we've played this whole tour." Deacon spoke as they came out for their encore.

"This is a song that has become near and dear to our hearts and we are happy to get to share it with you." Rayna added. Every member of the tour was out on stage.

Deacon, JC, Avery, Will, and Gunnar, started strumming their guitars.

" _Well, I remember when I was a lad times were hard and things were bad, but there's a silver linin' behind every cloud. Just four people that's all we were tryin' to make a livin' outta black land dirt. We'd get together in a family circle singin' loud."_ Deacon started the song as usual. _"Daddy sang bass."_ He deepened his voice.

" _Momma sang tenor."_ Rayna sang.

" _Me and little brother would join right in there."_ The four other guys sang together.

" _One of these days and it won't be long I'll rejoin them in a song I'm gonna join the family circle at the throne."_ Sadie took this part.

" _And no the circle won't be broken by and by lord by and by."_ The whole group sang.

" _Daddy sang bass."_ Deacon added his vocals again.

" _Momma sang tenor."_ Rayna sang again.

" _Me and little brother would join right in there."_ Will and JC took that part together this time.

" _In the sky lord in the sky."_ Everyone sang.

" _Now I remember after work momma would call in all of us."_ Maddie sang.

" _You could hear us singin' for a country mile."_ Daphne chimed in.

" _Now little brother has done gone on."_ Scarlett sang.

" _But we'll be together again up yonder in a little while."_ Layla added to the mix.

" _Daddy sang bass."_

" _Momma sang tenor."_

" _Me and little brother would join right in there."_

" _One of these days and it won't be long I'll rejoin them in a song. I'm gonna join the family circle at the throne. Oh, no the circle won't be broken by and by lord by and by."_ The whole group sang that entire line together this time.

" _Daddy sang bass"_

" _Momma sang tenor."_

" _Me and little brother would join right in there."_ Gunnar and Avery claimed that line.

" _In the sky lord in the sky. In the sky lord in the sky."_ They all finished strongly.

"Thank you, Chicago. It's been one hell of night and we hope to do it again soon." Avery whooped.

* * *

"Great show as usual, Will. Really at this point I don't think you can disappoint me." Mack clapped his hands. He was waiting backstage for Will to finish up his press stuff after the show.

Will tipped his hat and bowed a little. "Thank you, Mack. I'm sure you're just sayin' that because I stopped makin' you pay for your backstage passes." He joked.

"I will have you know that I am highly offended and just for that I'm not going to invite you out for our usual post show drinks." Mack said in jest.

"Bullshit, I'm sure that JC already has you talked into comin' back to the hotel room for a little after party since there isn't a club around here that he and Maddie can get into." Will called him out.

"Well, now that you mention it. I do recall getting an invitation to an after show poker game from this underage Texan I've gotten to know pretty well." Mack tapped his temple like he was pretending to think it over.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Will laughed.

"I haven't got a chance to tell you yet, but I was sorry to hear about you and Kevin." Mack said politely though he didn't really mean it. He obviously had it pretty damn bad for Will.

"Again I call bullshit. And don't be sorry, I'm not. Kevin is a really great guy. He helped me find me voice and gave me the courage to be me, but it was never gonna go anywhere because we couldn't get on the same page." Will shrugged his shoulders. Truthfully he'd had breakups that hurt him way more than his breakup with Kevin had.

"Damn, you can just see right through me can't you, Lexington? A guy tries to be sincere and you've gotta tear him to shreds." Mack put his hand over his heart like Will's words had wounded him.

"Don't be so dramatic, McCoy. We both know that you're secretly thrilled don't act like you're not. You've basically been stalkin' me for weeks waitin' for your chance." Will teased him.

"You say stalking I say admiring from a far and maybe daydreaming a little." Mack gave him an easy smile.

"I don't know why I enjoy your company so damn much you're more trouble than you're worth." Will smiled back at him.

"I have been accused of that a time or two in my life. I'm starting to think that it might be true." Mack laughed. His laugh sent a chill down Will's spine.

"At least you're honest and can admit to what you are I will give you points for that." Will tried to calm his breathing and relax a little bit. He had just gotten out of a relationship he didn't need to jump into something else right away. But, there was just something about Mack McCoy that he couldn't leave alone no matter how hard he tried.

"We went through this the first time that we met I'm just using you to become friends with Deacon." Mack elbowed him in the ribs playfully.

"Oh, that's right I suppose I should use you to meet Mike Fisher and strike up a friendship with him." Will teased right back.

"Aw, look at this, Maddie. Aren't they so damn cute together?" JC and Maddie just happened to walk up at that time.

"They are just so adorable. I'm sure that's exactly what the tough cowboy and the badass hockey player want to be called." Maddie rolled her eyes at her boyfriend.

"Do you think Will wants me to play his wing man again and scope this guy out to see if he likes him?" JC asked.

"I think Will is doing just fine without you playing wing man for him." Maddie played along.

"But, Maddie this is a strange boy that we don't really know anythin' 'bout. We can't leave him alone with our innocent little Will and let him break his poor heart." JC just laid it on thicker and heavier as he went along.

"Mack, I will give you fifty bucks just to body check the hell outta that kid. He's my best friend, but he knows how to play on my nerves." Will bargained.

"That's not a kid that's a Green Beret. I'm not body checking him. He could probably snap my wrist without trying and that's not really a great injury to have when you're a hockey player." Mack pointed out to him.

"This is true; I do share a tour bus with him though. I'm sure I can find some way to get him back." Will stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"Don't even think about startin' a prank war with me Will you will lose your ass off. I can promise you that." JC warned.

"I ain't scared. I say bring it on." Will accepted his challenge.

"Oh, Will, we are buddies, we are best friends, but I will show you no mercy." JC grinned wickedly.

Maddie shook her head as she watched the pair carry on like a couple of overzealous puppies. She walked over to Mack. "You know, JC and I are getting ready to go to dinner before this after show poker game starts. You should ask Will if he wants to come too. That way with the four of us the media wouldn't pay that much attention to it." She suggested to him.

"You know, I like the way you think. That's a pretty great idea. It could be like a double date without being a double date. Since I don't think he's ready for that yet, but to the outside observer it would look like a group of friends having dinner." Mack nodded his head thoughtfully.

"Exactly, it works out perfectly and it spares JC and I from having to go on another date with my parents. It's not the most fun experience in the world. And it's not that they don't trust us it's to keep our relationship out of the media and off of TMZ." Maddie replied.

"We can help each other out in that case. I get to know him better and you two get a date without prying eyes. It's a deal. I think you and I are gonna become great friends." Mack chuckled. He was only six years older than Maddie. He was barely out of his teenage years himself at only twenty-two.

"It's a win-win situation." Maddie agreed with him.

"Hey, Lexington, what do you say we grab dinner with these two pups so they can have an actual date without having to hide out?" Mack asked. At this point it didn't really matter who his picture showed up with on the internet everyone knew that he wasn't gonna talk about it.

"I say you're on. It saves me from havin' to watch the twin terrors while Rayna and Deacon chaperone these two." Will agreed quickly. This is just something to help Maddie and JC out this is not a date with Mack. Take things slow don't rush into anything again. He coached himself mentally. Because whether he wanted to or not he had it bad for Mack McCoy.

* * *

"Hey, Deacon, do you think I could talk to you for a second?" Gunnar stepped into the living area of Deacon and Rayna's hotel suite. He and Scarlett were always given a key just in case they had to help out with the boys.

Deacon was cuddled up on the couch with Rayna watching a movie while the twins slept peacefully in their playpen until it was time for them to be fed again. "Of course you can. You know that I'm always willin' to talk if you need somethin'."

"Yeah, I know that." Gunnar shuffled his feet nervously.

"Gunnar, is this a man to man talk you'd be more comfortable if I left the room for?" Rayna asked him. She knew that he would never say the words himself.

"No, I actually I'm glad that you're here too I could use your opinion." Gunnar replied.

"Gunnar, just say what you gotta say. It'll make it so much easier I promise." Deacon tried to calm him down.

Gunnar looked around before he pulled a ring box out of his pocket and opened it to reveal and engagement ring. "Deacon, can I have your permission to marry Scarlett?"

Deacon was taken aback for a moment. He'd expected to have to go through this with Maddie one day, but not with Scarlett. "Did you ask her momma?"

"I did and she told me to ask you. She said that you are the closest thing that Scarlett has ever had to a daddy and that it wouldn't seem right to her if I didn't ask you too." Gunnar replied.

Deacon sat up on the edge of the couch with a thoughtful look on his face. "Gunnar, do you love my niece and only want what's best for her and to make her happy?"

"I love her more than I know how to say. All I wanna do is make her smile and hold her when she's had a bad day and protect her asshole people who still give her shit about that breakdown she had." Gunnar answered him honestly.

Deacon had to swallow around a lump in his throat to speak. "Then yes, Gunnar. You have my permission to marry my niece. I can tell just from the way you look at her how much you love her. Just remember that's my little Bug so you be careful with her heart. She's gone through a lot in her life and she doesn't need to go through anymore bullshit because she hitched her wagon to an asshole."

"Thank you, Deacon, thank you, so much." Gunnar gushed. He knew that he was asking her for the right reason this time and not because he was grieving or scared, but because he truly loved her and didn't want to live without her. He showed the ring to Rayna. "What do you think? Too big? Not big enough?"

"Gunnar, I think it's perfect. I think you could have gotten that thing out of a bubble gum machine and she would love it just because it came from you." Rayna smiled at him.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoy it. Until next time please review.


	54. Chapter 54

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Fall Into Me by Brantley Gilbert, Wild Ones by Kip Moore, American Honey by Lady Antebellum, You Don't Know Her Like I do by Brantley Gilbert, The Heart of The World by Lady Antebellum, and Change Your Mind by Gloriana.

* * *

Chapter 54

St. Louis

" _A whisper away from changin' everythin', but it is safe to say such dangerous things? With your hands tremblin', girl I'm weak in the knees. It's times like these when silence means everythin' more than anythin'."_ JC opened up the show that night. This was their last show before the Fourth of July break. He looked over at Maddie standing on the side of the stage as he sang.

" _So, fall when you're ready, baby. Let our kiss count the moments and hearts set the pace. I'll be your love song and I'll love you right off your feet. 'Til you fall into me."_

" _Love ain't a race there's no finish line. And I love a chase, but don't leave me behind. Cause girl we're both gamblin' and I'm playin' for keeps. It's times like these when patience means everythin' more than anythin'."_ He sang softly never taking his eyes off of Maddie.

Maddie stood there looking at him with nothing, but love in her eyes. Once she opened herself up to what she was feeling for him she'd fallen for him quickly.

" _So, fall when you're ready, baby. Let our kiss count the moments and hearts set the pace. I'll be your love song and I'll love you right off your feet. And I'll fall for you every day. I'll cherish the moments time can't erase. We'll be the love song I promise you we're gonna sing."_

"Deacon, boys are writin' love songs 'bout our baby girl." Rayna said sadly.

"I know, babe, I hear it. And she's lovin' every minute of it." Deacon nodded his head in resignation.

" _Girl when you fall into me. Girl, when you fall into me. C'mon, baby fall into me. I'm waitin'. Fall into me. Fall into me. Fall into me. A whisper away from changin' everythin'."_ JC closed his eyes and sang the last note softly.

"That was really great, babe." Maddie grabbed his hand as soon as he left the stage.

"I wrote it for you, baby." JC looked around to make sure no one was paying attention to them and he kissed her softly. "I meant every word of it. You set the pace there's no rush here."

"I know that and I really appreciate it." Maddie rested her forehead against his.

" _We've been waiting all week. Been waiting on the weekend to crawl out of the shadows. We're the ones your momma said to run from. The ones your daddy kept you from. Now we're all on the loose and we're all here."_ Avery opened his set.

" _Everybody raise your glass. Pick it up and throw it back. Grab ahold of your honey. And everybody get a little lovin', a little touchin', a little kissin' and a huggin'. Do a little lovin', a little touchin', a little kissin' and a huggin'. Cause we don't need no sleep tonight. Everybody's bumpin' to the beat just right. Worry 'bout tomorrow when tomorrow comes. Tonight we're just worried 'bout havin' fun cause we're the wild ones. You know that we're the wild ones."_

"He's come up with some really great stuff for his album out on this tour." Bucky commented. He and Tandy had come up to catch the last show before the break.

"I'm impressed with how much work he's managed to get done. He's doin' really great." Deacon agreed.

" _We're gonna always do it our way and we don't care what nobody say. Cause we're the wildcats, we're the fighters, we're the midnight up all nighters."_

" _Everybody raise your glass. Pick it up and throw it back. Grab ahold of your honey. And everybody get a little lovin', a little touchin', a little kissin' and a huggin'. Do a little lovin', a little touchin', a little kissin' and a huggin'. Cause we don't need no sleep tonight. Everybody's bumpin' to the beat just right. Worry 'bout tomorrow when tomorrow comes. Tonight we're just worried 'bout havin' fun cause we're the wild ones. You know that we're the wild ones."_

" _Cause we don't need no sleep tonight. Everybody's bumpin' to the beat just right. Worry 'bout tomorrow when tomorrow comes. Tonight we're just worried 'bout havin' fun cause we're the wild ones."_

"You need to get him and JC into the studio while you're home on break. JC has an almost completed album and Avery is getting there. You and Deacon really need to think about finishing that album you started together if you wanna use the momentum of this tour to launch it." Tandy advised her sister.

"I know, Tandy, we've been working on it. We've got it all planned out. The only thing we have to do is lay down the tracks. We already have a few songs out we only need to add a few more." Rayna assured her.

"I just know how you two are. If someone doesn't stay on top of you to get things done you'll be on top of each other. I shudder to think of how you've scarred my poor nephews because they are sharing a room for you on that tour bus." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"Oh, stop it. We are not that bad." Rayna tried her best to suppress a smirk. They were that bad. They were on each other as soon as they were sure all the kids were asleep.

"I'll believe that one when pigs fly." Tandy snorted.

" _She grew up on the side of the road where the church bells ring and strong love grows. She grew up good she grew up slow like American honey."_ Maddie sang.

" _Steady as a preacher free as a weed couldn't wait to get going, but wasn't quite ready to leave. So innocent pure and sweet American honey."_ Daphne took the second half of the verse.

" _There's a wild, wild whisper blowin' in the wind callin' out my name like a long lost friend. Oh, I miss those days as the years go by. Oh, nothin' sweeter than summertime and American honey."_ JC sang the chorus with them to round out their sound a little bit.

" _Get caught in the race of this crazy life. Tryin' to be everythin' can make you lose your mind. I just wanna go back in time to American honey."_ Maddie sang again.

" _There's a wild, wild whisper blowin' in the wind callin' out my name like a long lost friend. Oh, I miss those days as the years go by. Oh, nothin' sweeter than summertime and American honey."_

" _Gone for so long now. I gotta get back to her somehow. To American honey."_ Daphne got a solo for a change.

" _There's a wild, wild whisper blowin' in the wind callin' out my name like a long lost friend. Oh, I miss those days as the years go by. Oh, nothin' sweeter than summertime and American honey. And American honey. Ooh."_ The trio harmonized to end the song.

" _Hey, old friend, thanks for callin'. It's good to know somebody cares. Yeah, she's gone, but I don't feel like talkin'. It might be just too much to bear. To hear somebody say it stops hurtin' or to hear somebody say she ain't worth it."_ Deacon played one of the songs off of his new album.

" _Cause you don't know her like I do. You'll never understand. You don't know what we've been through. Yeah, that girl's my best friend. And there's no way you're gonna help me she's the only one who can. No, you don't know how I've got to lose. You don't know her like I do."_ It was a song he'd written right after she'd chosen Luke over him and he thought that it fit perfectly on his album.

" _I can't forget I'm drownin' in these memories. It fills my soul with all the little things. And I can't cope it's like a death inside the family. It's like she stole my way to breathe. So, don't try to tell me I'll stop hurtin' and don't try to tell me she ain't worth it."_ He'd felt all those things every time that someone told him he'd be better off if he just let her go.

" _Cause you don't know her like I do. You'll never understand. You don't know what we've been through. Yeah, that girl's my best friend. And there's no way you're gonna help me she's the only one who can. No, you don't know how I've got to lose. You don't know her like I do."_

" _You don't know her like I do. You'll never understand. You don't know what we've been through. Yeah, that girl's me best friend. And there's no way you're gonna help me she's the only one who can. No you don't know how much I've got to lose. No you'll never know how much I've got to lose. You don't know her like I do."_

He hummed softly into the mic and closed his eyes. _"Not like I do. Never understand. That girl's my best friend. That girl's my best friend. That girl's my best friend."_ He sang softly getting a little louder until he wailed out the last line and played a powerful guitar solo.

" _Tin cans rattlin' pavement confetti fallin' everywhere. She falls asleep in the seat beside me rice caught up in her hair. I don't mind it I keep drivin'. Flyin' on these wheels of steel. A bit anxious a bit nervous the moment's all that we can feel."_ Deacon launched into one of the new duets that he and Rayna had written.

" _If oil is the soul of the engine and win is the drink of the gods. Forgiveness the road to redemption. Faith can still beat the odds. We're meant to be baby on to me. You'll never not be my girl. Cause love is the heart of the world."_ They sang together. They'd written this song on their second honeymoon.

" _I leave him sleepin' as I rise early always up before the dawn. The house is dark, but I see clearly. Kettle sings a mornin' song. Babies cryin' bacon's fryin' I soak up the sights and sounds. Minutes turn to days and I wish that I could slow them down."_ Rayna sang this time.

" _If grease is the soul of the kitchen and coffee the drink of the gods. Routine too perfect to mention. Time is a thief I would rob. We're meant to be baby hold on to me. I'll never not be your girl cause love is the heart of the world."_

" _Oh, and hope is the soul of the dreamer and heaven is the home of my God. It only takes one true believer to believe you can still beat the odds. We're meant to be baby hold on to me."_

" _You'll never not be my girl."_

" _I'll never not be your girl."_

" _Cause love is the heart, love is the heart, love is the heart of the world."_ They finished together in perfect harmony.

* * *

"Mack, I'm pleased that you could join us again." Deacon said as they sat down to dinner after the show. The twins were with the nanny for the moment so they could have a nice dinner. He'd been on every tour stop with them for the last three weeks since his hockey season was over.

"I'm just honored that you guys don't mind me hanging around so much." Mack replied.

"Did Will give you that signed copy of About a Girl I wanted you to have?" Deacon asked him.

"Yes he did. Thank you for doing that for me. I'm a really huge fan. That reminds me I've got some Preds' gear for the you and the little guys." Mack smiled.

"Mack, you don't have to get them anythin'." Rayna told him.

"Oh, I wanted to. You guys have been so great about letting me hang around and leaving me backstage passes for all your shows. I just wanted to do a little something in return. Besides that we kinda bonded when I helped Will watch them one night. Jayme didn't even spit up on me the way everyone warned me he would." Mack chuckled.

"Will, we like this boy. Keep him around." Sadie told him.

Will looked down at his plate and blushed. "Sadie, don't you have somethin' to do other than play matchmaker?"

"I agree with her, Will. He fits right in like he's part of the family." Avery added.

"Will, we like double dating with you two a lot better than we do with my very touchy feely parents. You can't get rid of him." Maddie joked.

"Will, I think your family here approves of us." Mack's cheeks blushed red.

"Startin' to sound like it. Doesn't sound like you've got much of a choice. You're gonna have to stick 'round whether you want to or not." Will grabbed his hand underneath the table.

"Hell yeah, he's sticking around. JC torments him with his pranks and leaves me alone." Gunnar chimed in.

"Gunnar, you're an easy target for everyone because you're so cute and awkward, babe." Scarlett kissed his cheek.

"Thanks, baby, that's really nice of you." Gunnar pretended to be mad.

"I'm starting to think that I need to send Bucky on tour with ya'll to play chaperone. The only one of you that seems to know how to behave herself is Layla." Tandy shook her head at them.

"That's because I'm an awesome manager and I don't let my client run around like a wild child." Jeff smirked.

"Jeff, sit down there, shut up, and don't make me regret inviting you to come out with us tonight." Rayna rolled her eyes at him.

"We both know that this is because you secretly loved that marketing plan I came up with for JC's album release and you don't want to admit to it." Jeff didn't know when to let well enough alone.

"You had one good idea, Jeff. And the only reason that idea got heard is because you went around my back to my sister." Rayna retorted. She could hardly take working with that man, damn if he didn't have a good idea every once in awhile.

* * *

The next night they were back in Nashville. The Exes were playing a show at the Bluebird and all of the Highway 65 artists had shown up to hear them play even Juliette who was on a break from Luke's tour. June and Beverly were in attendance as well.

" _Girl don't say a thing lie here next to me underneath the moonlight. I know it's getting late let the music play it's ok to stay the night."_ Gunnar strummed his guitar and sang softly.

" _How about we give this one more try."_ He and Scarlett sang together.

" _Come on and let me hold you."_ Scarlett sang.

" _Come on you know you want to."_ He sang.

" _One more chance to finally get this right. I know you think it's over. Give me a chance to change your mind."_ They harmonized.

" _Ain't been easy never will be. It was good and still could be. I want to touch your skin. Feel your face again. I still believe in you and me."_ She took this verse. She noticed that Gunnar fidgeted around on his stool as they sang.

" _How about we give this one more try."_

" _So come on and let me hold you."_ He sang this time.

" _Come on you know you want to."_ She took that line.

" _One more chance to finally get this right. I know you think it's over give me a chance to change your mind."_ They stared into each other's eyes.

" _How about we give this one more try. One more chance to finally get this right. I know you think it's over. Give me a chance to change you mind."_ She put her hand on his knee.

" _Baby please, I still believe in you and me."_ Gunnar took the end of the song alone. He waited for the applause to die down before he began to speak. "A lot of people might not know this, but Scarlett and I met right here at the Bluebird. I was the sound guy and she was just a waitress. I found her writing poetry one night and I put music to one of her poems."

"I hated to admit it to him at the time, but he was right I was a song writer not a poet." Scarlett chimed in.

"The rest as they say is history. We've been through a lot of ups and downs sense then. We became friends, a duo, roommates, a couple. Then we broke up for a little while, but we found out way back to each other, because some things are just meant to be." Gunnar picked up again.

"Listen to him layin' it on thick." Scarlett chuckled.

Gunnar stood up and turned his guitar around so it was on his back. "If there was one thing I learned from that it's that I never wanna find out what life is like without her again." He turned to face Scarlett. "You are the lyrics to my music and you are the song in my heart. You are the missing piece that makes me whole. And I promise you that I have the right reasons this time." He dropped down to one knee and pulled out the engagement ring he'd been carrying around. "Scarlett June O'Connor, will you marry me?" He slipped the ring on her finger.

Scarlett put her hands over her mouth and gasped as tears filled her eyes. She nodded her head while she struggled to find her voice. "Yes, Gunnar, the answer is yes. I would love to marry you." She pulled him to his feet and kissed him. They hadn't been back together for all that long, but this just felt right.

"I love you." Gunnar whispered against her lips.

"I love you too." Scarlett replied.

* * *

"It's kinda nice to be back in Nashville for a little while where I can walk around and hold your hand in public without havin' to worry 'bout someone takin' our picture." JC commented as he and Maddie walked around hand in hand.

"This is really nice. It's hard enough trying to find our footing as a couple without it being played out in the media. No matter what I do I'm gonna be fodder for reporters because of who my parents are, but they are paying more attention to me than they are to you. You're the one who's the rising country music star not me. Daphne and I have a couple of tracks laid down and that's it. I know that my parents are just trying to protect me, but it is so hard for me to express myself when I'm being tied down by my twelve-year-old sister. And things have been hard on her lately, but I feel like I can't make the kind of music I want to make because she's not ready for it yet." Maddie sighed.

"Did you try tellin' your parents this the way you just told me? I'm sure that they would listen to you. You could still be a duo with your sister and do your own thing at the same time. Musicians do it all the time." He replied.

"I know that. I just really don't wanna hurt Daphne or have her feel left out. I love playing music with my sister and I never want to lose that. I just feel like I need to be me right now. Four years isn't that big of a difference, but it is when I'm a teenager and she's not there yet." She didn't know if she was expressing herself clearly enough for him to understand.

"I get what you're tryin' to say and I understand where you're comin' from. I think that if you sat down and explained it to your momma and daddy that way they would understand too. On the other side of the coin I know that they want you to be able to be a normal kid too. There has to be a way for you to have the best of both worlds. All I can tell you is to talk to them, Cricket, make 'em understand what this means to you and I'm sure that they would help you work somethin' out." He advised her.

She dropped his hand and wrapped her arm around his waist. "How did I get lucky enough to get the most perfect boyfriend ever?"

"I keep tellin' you not to hold me up to that high standard I'm bound to let you down if you do." He grinned down at her.

"As long as you're yourself with me I don't think there is a way for you to let me down." She brushed her lips against his softly.

"I don't know how you made me fall this far this fast, but I know that I don't ever wanna stop fallin'." He told her.

"See? Stuff like that right there is why I think you're perfect." She teased him.

"I appreciate the sentiment, Cricket. But I ain't no one's version of perfect." He shook his head.

"What if I said you're close enough to perfect for me?" She bit her lip.

"I guess I'd have to say 'cause you're mine I walk the line." He came up with a Johnny Cash lyric off the top of his head to counter the the Alabama lyric she'd come up with. It was a cute little game that they played with each other.

"Maddie, I can't believe you're actually in town. You haven't been around all summer." Her friend Talia approached them.

"Hey, Talia, I've been on tour all summer and we're on a break right now. We'll be headed back out after the Fourth of July." Maddie hugged her friend.

"What are you doing out tonight?" Talia asked her.

"Just taking a walk. Talia, you remember JC don't you?" Maddie pointed at him.

"Yeah, I remember him. He's the cowboy that hangs around your dad a lot." Talia smiled politely.

"He's my boyfriend now." Maddie smiled proudly.

"I'd heard the rumor that you'd gotten a new guy." Talia replied.

"Where'd you hear that from?" Maddie knitted her brows together.

"I heard it from Colt that he thought that you had a new boyfriend." Talia explained to her.

JC just stood back and let them talk. The last thing he wanted to do was engage in teenage drama.

"Oh, you talk to Colt?" Maddie asked her face dropping.

"Yeah, he's been really bummed out since you guys broke up." Talia replied.

"Hey, Talia, I got the movie tickets whenever you're ready." Colt walked over to them.

Maddie looked between her ex and her best friend. "What exactly is going on here?"

"Maddie, it's not what it looks like I swear. We are just friends. You haven't been around lately and he still hangs out with the rest of us." Talia stammered over her words.

"Looks an awful lot to me like you two are hookin' up." JC observed softly. He hated seeing the pained look that was on Maddie's face right now.

"You're supposed to be my best friend, Talia. You're not supposed to go behind my back and hang out with my ex boyfriend." Maddie pointed out to her.

"He was single and I was single. I didn't see the harm in it since you broke up with him and were clearly done with him." Talia shrugged her shoulders.

"Some best friend you are." Maddie's eyes started to fill up with tears.

"Come on, Maddie, let's just go. This ain't worth it." JC grabbed Maddie's hand protectively.

"What you feel threatened if she talks to someone other than you? Afraid she might see you for the dumb hick you really are?" Colt sneered at him.

"I just don't like seein' her hurt that's all. If a real man is gonna make a woman cry then they're gonna be tears of joy not cause he made her sad." JC drawled softly.

"Bet you wouldn't take up that stance if I offered you a bottle to let her go. Face it you are destined to be a drunk just like your dad." Colt knew his soft spot and he went right for it every time.

"Least I knew my daddy loved me and he wasn't interested in payin' attention to everyone, but me. You don't like me cause you're jealous of me. I got all the love and attention that you never got from your daddy. I ain't gonna let you make me feel bad just so you can feel better about yourself." JC just let the younger man's words roll off his shoulders no matter how badly it killed him too.

"You're right, babe, let's just go. They aren't worth our time." Maddie tried to get him moving before Colt got him to lose his temper.

"I'm comin', Cricket, I don't plan on doin' anythin' foolish." JC started to walk away with her.

"She's calling you babe now. Give it a couple of months and it'll be someone else. She doesn't know what she wants. She really is her mother's daughter and you're your father's son so it really is fitting that you two found your way to each other." Colt called after them.

"Why thank you. I think that's the biggest compliment that anyone has ever paid us. If we can have a love like Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne then we must be doin' somethin' right." JC called back over his shoulder with a smirk on his face.

"Couldn't help yourself could you?" Maddie asked him.

"No I couldn't. I much rather would have socked him one in the mouth, but damn if that didn't feel good to say that too." He grinned and bumped his hip into hers.

"You have a temper don't you?" She teased him.

"You're just now figurin' that out?" He winked at her.

"No, I've seen it on display before and I'm worried that it's gonna get you in trouble one of these days." She told him honestly.

"Listen to me, Maddie. You never have to be scared of me or scared for me. I could never hurt you and I would never lay a hand on you. And as long as you're around I ain't gonna get into any fights cause you keep me grounded. All it takes is me hearin' the sound of your sweet voice sayin' my name and it soothes me." He admitted to her.

"Yeah, you're too damn perfect, but I'll keep you." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I told you that Jeff would be back out to play. He's got some trouble to stir up as soon as this tour is over I just had remind everyone that he's still around. I have to admit that I'm enjoying writing Will and Mack and Maddie and JC together a little too much. I had to add a little teenage drama in there. I hope I did Gunnar's proposal justice. It just seemed right to me that he would do it at the Bluebird. They sort of parallel Rayna and Deacon so I had to go there with them too. Until next time please review.


	55. Chapter 55

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 55

Deacon and Rayna held a huge Fourth of July bash at the cabin for their family. That included all the Highway 65 artists. Deacon had food on one grill while Will worked another. After all no one could barbeque ribs like a Texan. The guys all had a baseball game going.

"Juliette, what in the world are you doing to that poor baby?" Rayna asked. They had the playpen set up underneath a shade tree.

"It's not like she can have too much sun block on." Juliette rubbed Cadence down with sunblock.

"The idea is to rub it in, not bathe her in it." Rayna laughed and took the sunblock away from her.

"Well, how much did you put on the boys?" Juliette asked.

"Enough that they won't get burnt, but not so much that I couldn't rub it all in." Rayna shook her head.

"How was I to know? It's not like she came with some manual." Juliette huffed.

"You probably do need to put a little more on her than I put on the boys. They got Deacon's skin tone. You, Cadence, and I are all a little fairer skinned than they are. Deacon used to tease me because I freckle if I'm out in the sun too long." Rayna told her.

Juliette inclined her head in the direction of the baseball game. "Is that something we should worry about?"

"Bucky and Glenn are over there to keep the game fair. That's not something that you and I wanna get involved in. It's best to just let boys be boys on that one." Rayna wanted no part of that baseball game.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Come on, Mack, let's see if you actually hit a baseball. We all know that you can slap a puck 'round the ice, but can you play a real man's sport?" JC taunted him from his position on third base.

"Mack, that fifty buck offer to body check him has been upped to five hundred. We took up a collection. Just knock him on his ass once and we will all be happy." Gunnar chimed in from the outfield.

"Gunnar, you're supposed to be on my team. Shut the fuck up." JC yelled back at him.

"Hey, language, little ears." Glenn pointed at Daphne.

"Glenn, if she's ever heard Rayna and Deacon have a heated conversation she's heard worse than that." Bucky slapped him on the back.

"Ya'll stop runnin' your mouths and let's play some ball." Deacon rolled his eyes. He was on the makeshift pitcher's mound and Avery was playing catcher.

Avery pounded his mitt with his fist. "Come on, Deacon, right here." He held up a target for him.

Deacon threw the ball so fast that Mack didn't even have time to think about swinging. The ball hit Avery's glove with a loud snap.

"What the hell was that?" Mack's eyes got wide.

"That is what is known as a four seam fastball." Deacon smirked.

"You've still got it, Baby Brother!" Beverly cheered from the sidelines.

Avery threw the ball back to Deacon and then he took his hand out of the glove and shook it. "Yeah and my hand got the worst end of it. I have to play guitar."

"Am I missing something?" Gunnar asked.

"Yeah, a brain that's why we call you Scarecrow behind your back." JC rolled his eyes.

Deacon struck Mack out with two more pitches.

"June, why didn't anyone ever know that he could do that?" Lamar asked.

"Deacon John was all conference pitcher in high school. If he wasn't pitchin' he was playin' the outfield. He led his team to state all four years. My son was a very gifted athlete in addition to bein' a great guitar player. If you think he's good at baseball you should see him play football." June bragged on him.

"Come on, Deacon, strike his ass out." Avery encouraged when Jeff came up to the plate. They had only invited him because he and Layla seemed to be a package deal. If he got to be too much of a horse's ass they could just pawn him off on Lamar the two of them would probably hit it off.

"Don't worry this one I plan on sittin' down." Deacon hurled the ball across the plate.

All Jeff could do was look at it as it whizzed by him.

"That's a strike in any league." Bucky commented dryly.

"That wasn't a strike that was a laser." Glenn replied.

* * *

After they had finished their game Will grabbed two beers out of the ice chest and handed one to Mack.

"I best go check on those ribs. I gotta make sure that they are cookin' just right." Will twisted the cap off his bottle and chucked it into the bucket that was there just for that purpose.

"I hope you don't mind if I join you. I have to see how you Texans do this. I'm an east coast boy we don't do this kind of thing where I'm from." Mack took a long pull off of his beer.

"I would be glad to teach you my ways. I wish I would've known that you were a damn Yankee before I got involved with you." Will teased him.

"Every General Lee needs his General Grant. I'll be your damn Yankee if you'll be my dirty Rebel." Mack grinned at him sexily.

"I think we might be able to arrange that. I must be really taken with you 'cause that was 'bout the cheesiest line I've ever heard. And put the dimples away you ain't gotta try to hook me you already got me." Will put his hand on his shoulder and led him over to the grill.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"You look mighty damn content." Deacon walked up behind Rayna and kissed her neck while he wrapped his arms around her waist.

Rayna leaned back into him with soft sigh. "I have everythin' in the world to be happy about. I have an absolutely amazing husband, four wonderful children, a label that's doing extremely well, and a sold out tour. If things get any better than this I just might have to pinch myself to make sure it's not a dream."

"This ain't a dream, baby, we really finally have it all. We have a life's that's good. I just never thought when I wrote that song it'd be this good." He kissed the spot behind her ear.

"Why? Mr. Claybourne are you tryin' to seduce me?" She pressed ass against his growing erection.

"Only always, Mrs. Claybourne. Let me know when it's workin'." He slipped one of his hands up her shirt and brushed his fingertips over the soft, taut skin of her stomach.

She reached behind her and discreetly squeezed his bulge. "It feels like it's workin' on someone already. How do you propose we get away with this little tryst? We do have children runnin' 'round here you know?"

"From the looks of it two of them are takin' a nap right now and the other two are otherwise occupied. We could always take that canoe out to that little secluded spot and buy ourselves a few minutes of alone time." He whispered huskily in her ear. He pulled her hips flush against his and ground his hardon into her ass.

"You make a mighty temptin' offer. I don't suppose anyone would notice if we were to just slip away for a moment." She leaned her head back against his shoulder. He was a hard man to say no to. Especially when he got her all worked up like she was now.

"Meet me down at the bank in two minutes then. We gotta make this quick 'fore anyone notices." He nipped her ear playfully and made his way down to the canoe.

She followed after him about a minute later.

"Those two know no shame at all. There is no doubt in my mind about what they are up to." Tandy shook her head as she watched Deacon and Rayna sneak off.

"They take a half hour in the dressin' room to get ready for sound check. They aren't foolin' anyone. It's like they get within a foot of each other and they have to start goin' at it. If they aren't fightin' they're fuckin'." Sadie replied.

"I knew I liked you for a reason. Come and we can discuss those two over many drinks. I require alcohol to deal with them. That's why I'm thankful that they are on tour right now and I don't have to see them at the office everyday. Like I don't know what their hour long meetings are about." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"If you think this is bad. You should have seen them when she was still engaged to Luke. As far as I know nothin' ever happened, but the looks they gave each other were enough to start a brush fire." Sadie scoffed.

"I watched them do a thirteen-year tango around each other while she was married. You haven't seen anything until you've seen that. It's all in or all out with the two of them. And more often than not he's all in her." Tandy made a disgusted sound in the back of her throat.

"They really need to pay you more." Sadie joked.

"I think I'll give myself a raise. It's not like she would notice all I have to do is distract her with Deacon." Tandy laughed.

* * *

"Oh wow, Maddie, just wow. I don't think I can be around you with you wearin' that." JC's jaw damn near hit the ground when he saw the bikini that Maddie had on.

Maddie looked down at the tent that was forming in his swim trunks and laughed. "It looks like part of you likes it anyway." She moved closer and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Girl you are playin' with fire. And with as hot as you've got me we're both gonna wind up gettin' burned." He warned her.

"Does it look like I give a damn?" She pressed her hips up against his. She should feel bad for teasing him that way, but she didn't. He told her that she could set the pace and it would just make it that much hotter when she finally gave herself over to him completely. She pressed a steamy kiss to his lips.

"Christ, Cricket, you keep that up and you're gonna make me come in my shorts." He mumbled against her lips. He was all for letting her set the pace and take this at her own speed, but it killed him a little every time that she teased him. She had no clue what she was setting herself up for. He'd lost count of the number of cold showers he'd had to take since they started dating.

"Poor baby, at least you have a good mental image now for when you have to take care of yourself later." She whispered back to him. She got a little bold and reached out and groped his bulge.

He moved her hand away quickly. "Jesus, Maddie, you can't be doin' that your momma and daddy are 'round here somewhere." He cautioned her.

Thankfully at that moment Daphne came barreling into the water and jumped on his back. She put her hands over his eyes and giggled. "Guess who?"

"Uh oh, who is that? Is that my other girlfriend? This is kinda awkward. I told you that I'd meet you later." He joked.

"Oh, you have another girlfriend?" Maddie arched her eyebrow. She knew that he was just kidding around and that he went out of his way to do things to make Daphne feel special.

"Yeah, she's the cute little blonde with the sweetest giggle and I'm the only guy she's ever allowed to on dates with. 'Cause I'd have to break some boy's neck if he ever hurt her." He went on.

"No, silly, it's me, Daphne." Daphne corrected him.

"Oh, it's Daphne I thought it was this other blonde I know." JC walked further into the river until he could no longer touch bottom and he swam around with her on his back.

"You know, no matter how much you and dad don't want it to happen she's gonna have a boyfriend one day right?" Maddie swam next to him.

"I know she will and I will break his neck if he ever does anythin' to hurt her." He reiterated his previous threat. "Daphne, take a deep breath we're goin' under." He dove underneath the water with her on his back and he came back up a moment later.

"You're a really good swimmer, JC." Daphne kept her arms wrapped tightly around his neck.

"I'm special forces it's kinda a requirement. I can hold my breath for three minutes." He told her.

"Really?" Daphne asked excitedly.

"Yeah, really. You just hang out right there and I'll show you." He pulled from out of her grasp and went under the water.

* * *

"You are a horrible corrupting influence on me, Deacon Claybourne." Rayna laughed as they pulled up to a sandbar that was nestled back in a secluded cove.

"I didn't hear you sayin' no when I made the suggestion." Deacon pulled the canoe up on the sandbar so it wouldn't float away.

"I ain't never gonna turn you down, sugar." She pressed her lips against his.

He didn't waste time he undid the button on her jeans. "We gotta be quick 'fore anyone realizes that we're missin'." He kissed her back and laid her down on the ground.

Her hands undid his belt and unbuttoned his jeans. She worked his boxers down as he worked her panties down. "We are horrible." She laughed.

"If we're wrong I don't ever wanna be right." He chuckled and pulled his shirt over his head. He undid the buttons on her shirt and pulled it off before he freed her breasts from her bra. He dipped his head to suck her nipple as he slid inside her.

"Oh Jesus, baby!" She moaned out loudly as she felt herself stretch to accommodate his dick.

"Shh, baby, you gotta be quiet." He cautioned her. He covered her mouth with his to muffle the sounds of her moan. He stroked in and out of her quickly. He put his hand between their bodies and he rubbed her clit with his thumb. They didn't have much time and he didn't want to waste time playing around.

She moaned into his mouth and bucked her hips against him. She wrapped her legs around his waist and dug the heels of her feet into his muscular ass to pull him deeper inside her. She moved her mouth to pepper hot kisses along his jawline. She bit, sucked, and licked on his neck.

Deacon thrust harder and faster in response to the attention she was paying to him. He reached underneath her with his free hand and cupped the perfect globe of her ass. "You wanna ride me, baby?" He groaned huskily.

Rayna bit her lip and moved her hips against his faster. "Yeah, babe, I want that cock of yours in me as deep as I can get it." She laughed when he suddenly flipped them over. Now he lay on his back in the grass. She put her hands on his shoulders and used that as leverage to move herself up and down his hard member.

"Christ, Ray, you feel so damn good baby." He moaned. He put his hands under her ass and lifted her up and down his cock. His thumb soon found its way back to her clit.

She let out a shaky breath. "You do that too much more and you're gonna make me come, babe."

He strummed her clit faster while he brought his hips up to meet her every downward movement. "That's it come for me, babe. I can feel you there." He panted. He used his other hand to tweak her nipples he knew exactly what that did to her.

"Fuck, Deacon!" She cried out as her inner walls clamped down around him and her orgasm washed over her like a wave.

"Fuck me, Ray!" He groaned as he emptied his load into her.

They both lay there on the ground panting for a moment. They looked at each other with goofy grins on their faces and then they burst out laughing.

Rayna covered her face with her hands. "Oh God, we did not just do that. We aren't kids anymore, Deacon. We have children that we could scar for life if they heard us."

"Oh, babe, you're so adorable right now. I'm pretty sure that Maddie at least knows that we have sex. There's no reason to be embarrassed. We've done it in far more interestin' places than this before." Deacon couldn't help laughing at her.

She smacked his chest. "Deacon, this is not funny at all. And don't mention our baby girl and our sex life in the same sentence. She is too sweet and innocent to know anything about sex or how babies are made." She was in major denial.

"Babe, as much as I'm right there with you on that one. I'm pretty sure she does know a thing or two whether we want her to or not. And we are not talkin' 'bout this right now. Not after what you and I just did." He did a full body shake at the thought of anyone doing to his little girl what he'd just done to his wife.

"Right, we aren't talkin' 'bout this. It's bad enough that I'm gonna have to talk to her 'bout this soon. She has it bad for that boy and I can't imagine that they aren't gonna." She replied thoughtfully.

"Ray, I just said we ain't talkin' 'bout it. We are just gonna lay here for a minute and bask in the afterglow of the completely amazin' sex we just had." He put his foot down.

She kissed his chest where she had smacked him. "I'm starting to think that canoe is like a damn aphrodisiac. We never make it far in that thing without sex happenin'." She shook her head. "I really can't believe that we just did that." She said again.

"I don't know why you can't believe it. I'm pretty sure that we made our boys in my shower." He chuckled.

"Babe, we screwed so many times that night it's impossible to say which part of the house we made them in. I'm gonna think the best of us though and say that we made them in the bed." She rolled over so that her chin rested on his chest.

"Considerin' our track record I'll go along with that." He pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

"With all the sex we've had lately we're pretty lucky that we haven't made another one yet." She looked up at him her eyes sparkling.

"Is that somethin' that you wanted to work on? I know you'd mentioned wantin' maybe one or two more." He looked down at her intently.

"I wanna at least get to work on a new album before we even think about it. I do want another baby with you. I just want to be squared away with a new album launch before I have to take time off again. And I'd like for there to be around a year and half between the boys and a baby. I'm good with the tourin' schedule we have set up now where we can bring 'em with us. And if we have them that close together we'd have time to one last huge tour together before the boys start to school and we take a step back and run the label." She answered him thoughtfully.

"Darlin', we will do whatever you want to do. I just wanna have it all with you. The dream house, the business, the family, and the music. Right now that just sounds pretty damn perfect to me." He smiled and stole a kiss from her.

"That does sound damn near perfect. And I think now that we're older we can appreciate it a little bit more than we could have when we were younger. We are certainly able to enjoy them more without the crazy tour schedule. You remember how much I had to leave the girls and I hated that. That's why I stopped tourin' so much so I could stay home and be the kinda momma that I wanted to be." She rubbed her nose against his.

"It's a plan then, babe. But right now we need to get dressed and get back, 'fore we catch hell for bein' gone so long. You know between your sister and Sadie their favorite topic is our sex life. We don't need to add more fuel to the fire." He started redressing.

She gathered her clothes and started putting them back on. "Don't I know it."

* * *

Will's ribs were a huge hit with everyone and a edict was made that he now had to make them for all family gatherings.

"So, Scarlett, have you and Gunnar started thinkin' 'bout a weddin' date yet?" Beverly asked her daughter.

"Right now, momma, we are so focused on this tour that we haven't thought 'bout it. I'd like for it to happen soon. I don't see the point in us havin' a long engagement when we both know that this is what we want." Scarlett replied.

"You know who would be really good to plan a quick wedding for you? Tandy. She's a miracle worker. She can make things happen in half the time it takes normal people to get things done." Rayna suggested.

"I wouldn't even know when to even think 'bout settin' a date. Gunnar and I have an album to work on in addition to this tour. That doesn't leave a whole lotta time for weddin' plannin'." Scarlett shrugged her shoulders.

"I'll tell you what. Stop by the office while we are in town and we will go over the schedule and see when we can find a free minute to get the two of you married." Rayna suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds good to me." Scarlett agreed.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Once the sun went down the guys put on a pretty impressive fireworks display. It was impressive considering that most of them were drunk. Before the fireworks started going off Deacon put wax earplugs in Little Deacon, Jaymes, and Cadence's ears to keep the noise from scaring them.

"Look at how much Deac is enjoyin' this, Ray. I think we might have a little redneck on our hands. He's gonna like to blow stuff up and set stuff on fire." Deacon smiled down at his son in his arms. He reached up to scratch a spot on his neck.

"I see that Jayme seems to be liking it too." Rayna scratched at a spot on her shoulder. "Babe, do I have a rash on my shoulder?" She adjusted Jaymes in her arms and pulled her shirt down so he could check for her.

"Nope, that's not a rash." Deacon replied. "Did you leave a hickey on my neck or is it all red and splotchy?" He leaned over so she could look.

"That's not a hickey, babe. I'm not you I don't leave my marks on you where they are easily seen." She winked at him.

"Ray, I've got some bad news then. We rolled 'round in poison ivy earlier." He could feel itchy spots on his chest and back too.

"As much as I hate to say this I think you're right. This is your fault for talkin' me into it." She glared at him. She wasn't really mad at him, but she was going to blame this on him.

"I didn't hold a gun to your head and make you have sex with me, Rayna. I didn't take much convincin' on my part." He replied lowly.

She just rolled her eyes and turned her back to him. She was going to let him sweat this one out for a little while. "So help me God, Deacon, if I got poison ivy in a place that no one should ever have poison ivy I will kill you."

"If you've got it there then I probably do too." He pointed out to her.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Juliette, do you see the way her eyes light up watching these fireworks?" Avery asked excitedly. He was happy that Cadence wasn't scared of everything the way that some babies were. She just rolled with the punches and took things as they came. It was probably because he'd had her on a tour bus since she was big enough.

"I do see that. She's just takin' it all in. I think this one is gonna be fearless." Juliette kissed the top of her head.

Avery wrapped his arms around her waist from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Just like her mother."

"Let's just hope she's a little more grounded like her father. With those two traits there'll never be any stoppin' this girl from anythin'." The idea both excited and scared her.

"That's ok if she gets too out of control she'll have you there to stop her. I don't know anyone or anything that will ever be able to stop you or say no to you. God knows I'm powerless to say no to you even when I should." He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek and along her jawline. They hadn't had sex since they had both been out on tour.

"I think that an early bedtime may be in order for this one tonight. I have a very patient, very understanding husband who I think deserves a proper thank you for bein' so wonderful." She leaned back into him.

"I think that's a perfect idea." He whispered his breath hot on her ear.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"I got fifty says that Gunnar burns his finger tryin' to light this next one off." Will wagered with Mack.

"I'm not taking that bet. It's Gunnar he's going to do something to get himself hurt." Mack retorted.

"He makes a pretty valid point. The next one is mine anyway and it's gonna go off without a hitch. Ain't that right, Cricket?" JC spoke up.

"That's right, Jimmy." Maddie stole a kiss from him before he went to set off some fireworks. She looked over at Will and Mack who were staring deeply into each other's eyes. "Will you two stop dancing around each other and just kiss already?" She rolled her eyes at them. She'd basically forced them into their first real date together. She was starting to think she was going to have to do everything for them.

"She does make a pretty good point. I think we've been on enough dates that kissing would be the next appropriate step." Mack worked his bottom lip between his teeth.

"Mack, stop talkin'." Will leaned in and kissed him hard on the mouth.

Mack didn't hesitate to kiss back just as aggressively. The pair stood there their lips locked together as fireworks flashed overhead.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I'm sorry for the long wait I've been battling an infection and working on a book so I haven't had much time, but I'm trying to keep up for you guys. I promise you that Jeff still has a purpose for being around and you'll see what that is when Marcus shows up, but after that he is gone off to cause some trouble elsewhere and leave our heroes in peace. Thanks for sticking with me. I still have some big stuff planned for this story. Coleman is going to be making a reappearance soon and that's going to set off a whole series of events that's going to be exciting. I just have to get them off this tour and get Scarlett and Gunnar married. I have a pretty good twist in store that I think everyone is going to like. Until next time please review.


	56. Chapter 56

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 56

"If you two aren't a sight I don't know who is. I'm not even gonna ask how ya'll got into poison ivy." June looked between Rayna and Deacon. They were both covered in poison ivy.

"It ain't funny, momma. We must've gotten into up at the cabin and now it just keeps gettin' worse instead of better. We need you to watch the boys while we go to the doctor and get somethin' for it. I'm sorry to call you over here so early, but I can't stand this anymore." Deacon scratched everywhere as he spoke.

"Deacon, stop scratching it'll only make it spread." Rayna scolded him.

"No, son, you're goin' to the doctor. A little calamine lotion and Ray will be fine. You're allergic to poison ivy, Deacon John. No matter how many times you wash it off of you the oil still stays on your skin and that's why she's got it all over her. You two share a bed. If you two just shared a bed maybe you wouldn't have this problem." June arched an eyebrow at them.

"Babe, just go to the doctor and get rid of that shit. I don't even want you touching the boys right now. Besides that, we only have two days left in tour before we go back out on tour. If you're still in that state you're not getting in my bed." Rayna told him.

"Ok, I'm goin' damn." Deacon kissed her cheek and grabbed the keys to his truck. "Want me to meet you at the studio or come pick you up here?"

"Meet me at the studio. No sense in you backtracking." Rayna waved him out the door.

"Do you want to know how to get rid of that?" June asked her.

"Yes, it feels like I have chicken pox." Rayna scratched a spot on her arm.

"You're gonna need to strip the sheets off your bed and wash them in really hot water. Then you want to wipe your mattress down and scald out your tub. He's like an outbreak monkey when he gets into poison ivy. I wouldn't be surprised if Maddie or one of the boys is just as allergic to it as he is. I'll make you a salve out of oatmeal to put on that and it'll make you feel a little better. Actually, I'll clean up everythin' for you. You just sit here and rest." June replied.

"June, I can't ask you to do all of that." Rayna protest.

"You ain't askin' me too I'm volunteerin' to. I'm a momma this is what I do when my babies are sick. Like I said an old home remedy will work for you, but Deacon John will have to get a shot and some actual medicine for that. I don't know how he forgot that he's that allergic to poison ivy. The first time he did that he was a little boy and it scared the hell out of me." June reassured her.

"If you're sure you don't mind." Rayna really wasn't going to protest to hard.

"I'm positive, sweetie, you just sit here." June kissed the top of her head in a show of motherly affection before she headed upstairs.

* * *

" _Nashville country nights, Detroit rock city lights. Arizona, California. Texas desert, Green Bay blizzard. Indiana, Louisiana."_ Avery was in the studio laying down tracks for his album.

" _I've rolled a lot of miles just to feel your smile. Girl I wanna touch while I kiss your lipstick. 'Round the bend down the road. I'm in out of the cold. Itching to get my fix and kiss your lipstick."_ He'd been inspired to write this song one night after getting off the phone with Juliette. Their touring schedule kept them apart and he missed her like crazy. They had really reconnected the last few days and things were going well for them.

" _Carolina north and south. Alabama to Chi Town. Dakota, bad lands the heart of the heartland. Way up above Dixie, Boston, Jersey, New York City. Spokane to Denver across the plains. West Virginia, coast of Maine."_

"He's killin' it in there." Juliette observed to Rayna and Bucky.

"He really is." Bucky agreed.

"He's been writing like a mad man lately. More often than not during the day Cadence is on the bus for playdates with the boys while he writes with the other Wayward Musicians." Rayna chuckled.

" _I've rolled a lot of miles just to feel your smile. Girl, I wanna touch you while I kiss your lipstick. 'Round the bend down the road I'm in out of the cold. Itching to get my fix and kiss your lipstick."_ Avery winked at his wife.

" _Georgia's peaches, Florida's beaches. A million dots on the map, but there's only one that brings me back."_

" _I've rolled a lot of miles just to feel your smile. Girl, I wanna touch you while I kiss your lipstick. 'Round the bend down the road I'm in out of the cold. Itching to get my fix and kiss your lipstick."_ He finished his song.

"Damn he's soundin' good." Deacon walked into the sound booth just in time to catch the end of that song. His poison ivy looked less red and splotchy than it had before he went to the doctor.

"Deacon, you look like you have chicken pox." Juliette laughed at him.

"You think that's bad you should've seen him earlier." Rayna shook her head.

"The doc fixed me right up. I got a couple of shots and some ointment to put on this stuff. The good news is I'm no longer contagious." Deacon grinned. "Where's little Catydid at today?"

"That's what you call my daughter?" Juliette asked amused.

"That is what I call her. I also tell her that she's never datin' cause ain't no boy ever gonna pass the Uncle Deacon test." Deacon laughed.

Juliette pressed the intercom button. "Babe, that sounded great come on in here for a minute."

"What do you need?" Avery came into the booth.

"I thought that we agreed." Juliette looked between Rayna and Deacon.

"Oh yeah, that. I forgot." Avery caught on to what she meant.

"Rayna, Deacon, Avery and I would be honored if you'd be Cadence's godparents." Juliette told them.

"We'd love to." Rayna pulled the younger woman into a hug.

"Of course the answer to that is yes. I'd hug ya'll, but I ain't sure you want me touchin' you in my currant condition." Deacon smiled at them warmly.

"Trust me you don't want him to touch you. He's like patient zero." Rayna chimed in as she hugged Avery.

"I need to get on down the hall and see how Jimmy's session is goin'. I'm producin' him and it's bad form if I don't show up." Deacon said.

"I'll come with you. I think between Buck and Juliette they have Avery covered. Lord knows that's the only way I'm gonna get to see my daughter. She's glued to his side these days." Rayna snorted.

* * *

JC and Maddie were playing around in the sound booth when Rayna and Deacon walked in. Tandy was supposed to be in there supervising, but she had lost all control of the situation.

"There are the Itchy Twins now. Maybe they can force you to get some work done." Tandy was having way too much fun with the fact that they both had poison ivy.

"Jimmy, get your ass in there and start recordin'. Your album is almost finished." Deacon ordered him.

"I'm gonna grab a water. You want one, babe?" Maddie asked JC.

"Yeah, that'd be good, thanks, Cricket." JC smiled at her as he headed into the booth.

"One of these days I'm gonna get out of the two of them why he calls her that." Rayna just shook her head at them. She was sure that she and Deacon had been worse at that age.

"I don't think we wanna know." Deacon just was better off not knowing.

"Just like some of us don't want to know how you two both got poison ivy, but I'm sure that I can guess. If you two would screw in a bed like normal people this wouldn't happen. Or here's an even better idea control your hormonal teenage urges to have sex on every flat surface." Tandy suggested to them.

"Oh God, can you just shut up?" Rayna pleaded with her.

"There would be no fun in that for me at all." Tandy smirked at her.

"I don't comment on you and Bucky's sex life. You can go ahead and leave my sex life alone." Deacon told her.

"That's because Bucky and I don't think we are fooling anyone by sneaking off together like two teenagers. We keep our sex life confined to our place." Tandy retorted.

"Wait a minute. Did you just say our place?" Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"Don't make a big deal out of it. I gave up my apartment and moved into his house. I did while you were out of town so I wouldn't have to hear your mouth about it." Tandy sighed.

"I'm not the mouth of the south that's you. I can't tell you anything without the whole world knowing it too." Rayna shot back.

Deacon ignored them and went to the mixing board. "Jimmy, I'm ready any time that you are."

"Who do I tell things to? It's not like I go running to the tabloids." Tandy demanded an answer.

"Everyone that we know. Especially, Sadie. You two get some kind of kick out of knowing things about me. And I shudder to think about what you and Bev talk about together. I don't even wanna know." Rayna snorted.

"Jimmy, please." Deacon urged him on.

JC gave him the thumbs up that he was ready.

Deacon turned the music on in his headphones.

" _I hear there's folks tired of us talkin' 'bout dirt roads, tailgates, tan lines, and cornrows. It sounds made up, but that's the life I know. We know all about some moonshine. Moonlight, bonfires seein' all the stars on a summer night. Don't see how that's gettin' old."_ JC started singing and Deacon was able to drown out Rayna and Tandy in the background.

" _C'mon, ride with us on Friday night see if we ain't jacked 'em up. See if we ain't settin' it on fire. See if we don't burn it up. See if we ain't crankin' Hank sippin' on a little somethin' strong. Hey man, you'll see why we can't quit singin' that same old song. The same old song."_

"If you two didn't feel the need to have sex in the office, in dressing rooms, and every other inappropriate place that you could think of no one would have anything to talk about." Tandy countered.

"We have a healthy sex life. We always have I don't know why you're so obsessed with it." Rayna called her out.

" _You heard enough about red dirt, blue collar dollars and hard work. Five o'clock headin' to outskirts three chords and the truth. Tired of hearin' 'bout them tan legs, bare feet on the dash, sundress. Daisy Dukes, boots, and Ray Bans. You ain't even seen them move."_

Deacon tried his best to concentrate on listening to JC with those two chattering in the background.

" _Hang loose on Friday night. Man, ain't they lookin' tough? See if they ain't blowin' your mind. See if you don't fall in love. Let her find that country station then watch her sing along. Hey man, you'll see why we can't quit singin' that same old song. That same old song woah oh. That same old song woah oh. That same old song, woah oh, woah oh."_

"Your healthy sex life that you don't try to bother to hide from everyone else. You two are not as slick as you think you are." Tandy argued back.

"If you weren't always watching so closely you wouldn't know what we were doin'. And who says that we were havin' sex anyway? Maybe we went on a hike." Rayna defended.

" _Just when you think you're heard it all 'bout a small town. All that small talk goin' 'round. That ain't all we're all 'bout."_

"Cut the bullshit, babe, we all know that there are three things you and Deacon do very well together. Make music, fuck, and fight. Sometimes you do all three at the same time." Tandy shook her head.

"Oh God, I did not need to walk in and hear that." Maddie groaned loudly.

"Will ya'll kindly shut the hell up? I'm tryin' to produce an album here." Deacon finally snapped.

" _Sit with us on Sunday mornin' bow your head and let us pray. Close your eyes and let the lord in tell me you don't feel a thing. When we sing Amazin' Grace c'mon man sing along. You're 'bout to see why we can't keep singin' that same old."_

"If it means I don't have to hear anything else like that I'll be happy for them to shut up." Maddie was a little traumatized from what she'd heard.

"Momma and I like each other a little too much and Aunt Tandy likes to talk about it way too much." Deacon gestured for her to join him. He put his arm around her. "Sisters were invented to make you crazy."

"I hope Daphne and I never sound like that." Maddie grumbled.

"Not as much as I hope you don't." Deacon replied.

" _Ride with us on Friday night see if we ain't jacked 'em up. See if we ain't settin' shit on fire. See if we don't burn it up. See if we ain't crankin' Hank sippin' on a little somethin' strong. Hang with us and you'll see why we can't quit singin' that same old song woah oh. Yeah we're singin' that same old song, woah oh. That same old song, woah oh. You'll be singin' that same old song."_ JC made it through his song.

"Jimmy, that was perfect. That's the take we are goin' with." Deacon pressed the intercom button.

"Thank God, that's only the fifteenth time I've run through that song." JC sighed in relief.

"I know it's a great song, but we had to nail it just right. That was perfect." Deacon replied.

"Tandy, can't you go somewhere and I don't know plan Scarlett and Gunnar's wedding or something?" Rayna asked with a sigh.

"Please, I'm already on getting their wedding planned. We are all set for a September wedding. I've got it worked out. Don't worry about it. The only thing they have to do is tell me what they like and what they want and I'll make it happen. Babe, do you even know who you're talking to right now?" Tandy asked her.

"Yeah, my mouth of the south sister that is way too concerned with my sex life, but is damn good at her job. You work fast." Rayna sounded impressed.

"Hey, come on, stop talkin' 'bout that in front of the teenage ball of hormones. She will think that it's somethin' that we condone." Deacon begged them.

"Deacon, you were doing much worse than just kissing my baby sister when she was Maddie's age. God love them they both have a thing for guitar playing, dirty minded older men. You're even older than I am let me remind you of that." Tandy started in on him.

"Tandy, I am what like three months older than you?" Deacon asked her.

"Babe, try four months, but that isn't the point right now." Rayna corrected him.

"You know I just remembered that Bev is recordin' today. Maddie, let's go listen to Aunt Bev and see how she's doin'." Deacon drug his daughter out with him to save her from her mother and aunt.

"Thank you, dad." Maddie told him gratefully.

"I will always save you." Deacon promised her.

"Especially from those two. I don't get them at all." Maddie shook her head.

"Neither do I." Deacon didn't know what else to say. He walked into another sound booth. "Hey, Rusty, how's she doin'?" he asked his assistant. He'd sent him to listen in on Bev's recording session.

"Sounds good to me so far. She's getting ready to start a new song." Rusty reported.

Deacon waved at his sister through the glass and she waved back. "Sam, turn up the volume I wanna hear this."

Sam turned up the volume for him. "There you go, Deacon."

"Thanks," Deacon smiled at him. "Maddie, you've never heard your Aunt Bev really sing. Just listen."

" _It keeps rainin' down the tear stained face of this lonely town and I drown. And I keep reachin' for one good reason why you said goodbye, turn around. Oh, you're leavin' me in this empty state. And all I see are dark clouds as you drive away."_ Beverly had written this song with Kevin.

" _Mississippi's cryin', baby. Mississippi's sad. I think we just figured out you ain't comin' back. The sky can see you leavin' and it can't hold back the tears. It's pourin' down and my heart thinks it's dyin' Mississippi's cryin'."_

Deacon looked on uneasily. He had to admit it was a beautiful song, but it sounded an awful lot like it was about him.

" _Now she keeps lookin' for headlights shinin' in the driveway, but they don't shine. And I keep hopin' this crazy storm will drive you home, but not this time. Oh, my only wish is to change the weather. Are you comin' back? Or is it gonna rain forever?"_ Beverly's voice was thick with raw emotion.

" _Mississippi's cryin', baby. Mississippi's sad. I think we just figured out you ain't comin' back. The sky can see you leavin' and it can't hold back the tears. It's pourin' down and my heart thinks it's dyin' Mississippi's cryin'."_

"Wow, dad, she's like really, really good." Maddie whispered to her father.

Deacon smiled at that. "I know she is."

" _Where you goin', baby? What's in Tennessee? You never said a word 'bout Memphis. So, who is she? It keeps rainin' down the tear stained face of this lonely town and I drown."_ Beverly wailed.

Deacon breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that line. It meant that the song was about her ex husband and not about him.

" _Mississippi's cryin', baby. Mississippi's sad. I think we just figured out you ain't comin' back. The sky can see you leavin' and it can't hold back the tears. It's pourin' down and my heart thinks it's dyin' Mississippi's cryin'."_ Beverly finished the song strongly.

"Hot damn, Beverly, listen to you." Deacon whooped into the intercom.

Beverly came out of the booth and into the room with him. "Baby Brother, you came to hear me." She hugged him tightly.

"Bev, I have poison ivy you might not wanna do that." Deacon laughed at how fast she jumped away from him.

"You could have told me that before you let me hug you." Beverly pushed him playfully.

"That wouldn't have been any fun at all." Deacon smirked. "I think you impressed the hell outta your niece."

"Aunt Bev, that was so amazing." Maddie smiled at her.

"Thanks, Maddie. I've heard the songs that you've been singin' lately and you're pretty amazin' too." Beverly hugged her.

"Maddie, you wanna go check on your boyfriend and make sure that your momma and Aunt Tandy ain't killed each other yet?" Deacon was trying to get her out of the room so he could talk to his sister about something.

"You're making me go back in there?" Maddie whined.

"You leave Tandy alone. You and Rayna both need someone to knock some sense into you sometimes." Beverly teased him.

"Yes I am, cause it ain't gonna be much better in here. Your other aunt and I are 'bout to have words." Deacon shooed her away.

"Fine, dad, I can take the hint. I know when I'm not wanted." Maddie stuck her tongue out at him playfully.

"Maddie, I got a pair of pliers in my guitar case. I will use them to rip your tongue out." Deacon chased her off laughing.

"What are we havin' words 'bout and is it gonna test the boundaries of my new meds?" Beverly asked him.

"We're havin' good words. I just want it to be a surprise, but I wanted to run it by you first." He replied.

"Ok, go on I'm listenin'." She told him.

"Momma is 'bout to go stir crazy with not havin' a job. I don't want her waitin' tables anymore and I don't want that for you either. So, here is what I was thinkin'. My wife owns a record label and I'm the talent scout. What if we were to open up a venue that's kinda like the Bluebird for artists to get out and get themselves heard?" He laid out his idea for her.

"Have you run this idea by your wife? You're an alcoholic with a capital A. Do you really need to own what amounts to a bar?" She reasoned with him.

"I will have you know that my wife was the first person that I ran this by. I would never be there I would just own it. And we talked 'bout it long and hard. It'd be no different than if I were to play the Bluebird or any other place that serves alcohol. But, I wouldn't deal with any of that, because I've got my music to focus on. You and momma could run it and you could have a regular slot preformin' whenever you wanted to. Bucky and Glenn or even Watty might stop in from time to time to check it out, but it'd be yours. What do you think?" He asked.

"I think I really like that idea. And you never know who might come in and hear me play. I might finally get a yes. Why you doin' all this, Deacon?" She asked in reply.

"Cause maybe part of me realizes that you were right I left you and momma alone with Paul to fend for yourselves. It's not that I left it's that I ran. Cause that's a thing I do. I run when I can't handle somethin'. I just recently stopped doin' that. I ain't never gonna be able to make up for all those years I stayed away, but I am workin' on bringin' us all closer together as a family. Is that somethin' that you'd be interested in?" As he'd come to terms with his issues with his father he'd started to heal and he'd realized a lot about himself in the process. He wanted to really and truly make amends for the things that he had done.

Donating part of his liver to Paul and kind of sort of having a relationship with him had helped him. Hearing Vince's parents say that they didn't blame him for his death had helped him. All of his old wounds had started to heal. The demons that had been chasing him his whole life seemed to be getting farther and farther away. He'd stood and fought them and he'd beaten them back at last. Instead of running he'd faced something for the first time in his life and a burden had been lifted off of his shoulders.

"I say let's do this." Beverly smiled at him.

"Let's do this. I already have the venue scouted out and I have the name in mind. Everythin' else is up to you and momma." Deacon smiled back at her.

"What's the name?" She asked him.

"The Mile Marker. You really don't wanna ask why either. I'm sure if you asked Tandy 'bout it she'd be more than happy to share a guess or two with ya." His shit eating grin pretty much gave the story behind that name away though.

"Oh, Tandy and I have quite a few conversations 'bout the two of you stubborn mules. I can get behind that name though." She laughed at him.

"It's because the label is called Highway Sixty-five and highways have mile markers. That was my reasonin'. Ya'll just think the worst of us. That ain't even nice, Bev." He shook his head in mock sadness.

"And I'm sure that you and Rayna have probably had sex in the cab of your truck by a mile marker more than a time or two." She tried to contain a laugh at the look on his face.

"I'm 'bout to veto this topic of conversation for everyone. Not just my sex life, but the topic of sex period end of discussion." He got red in the face and stomped his foot.

"Oh my God, I wish my parents weren't sex addicts!" Maddie walked back in just in time to hear that.

Deacon couldn't help it. He just burst out laughing at her. It wasn't funny that he'd traumatized his child, but the look on her face was priceless.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	57. Chapter 57

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 57

"Deacon, I need to grab you for something really fast." Tandy stopped Deacon as he went to walk out of the office.

"I don't have a lot of time, Tandy. Ray took the girls school shoppin' today. I'm supposed to meet them at the new house to do a walk through and see if things are up to their standards. Then I need to swing by the bar and see how things are comin' along there. God help me if I'm late to meet your sister. She is never on time, but I'm supposed to be thirty minutes early." Deacon sighed. They'd just come in off tour. After taking a couple days off to rest they dove right back into the thick of things.

"That's what I need to see you for. The liquor license just came in and you need to make sure it gets put up. I just need you to sign a couple things and then you will be set. Go do whatever you want to do or need to do. Just where are your boys?" Tandy asked him.

"Oh shit, I brought them in with me today. Rusty is watchin' 'em. I should probably grab 'em 'fore I leave. I've been listenin' to demos all mornin'." He made a face. He'd been so busy he'd almost forgot that the boys were hanging with him for the day.

She put down the documents in front of him. "Just sign those and go get my nephews." She shook her head at him.

"I knew that they were taken care of don't look at me like that." He signed the papers that she gave him without reading them through. He knew that she had done that for him already and would let him know if there was anything that he needed to worry about.

"Thank you, I will get these submitted for you and you will be good to go. If I haven't said it. I think this is a bad idea." She took the papers from him.

"Says the woman who drinks for me when I get all worked up. Tandy, I've worked too hard to get where I am today. To get what I have today. I'm not gonna do anythin' to mess that up. I promise that I'm not gonna hurt my family. I ain't the same man I was this time last year. I ain't even the same man I was three months ago. I've changed. Believe in me and believe in that. You owe me the benefit of the doubt this time around." He reassured her.

She nodded her head in acknowledgement of what he had said. She couldn't argue with anything that he'd just said.

"Now, I gotta go get the boys and get goin'. Thanks for takin' care of all this for me." Deacon turned to go collect the boys.

"Deacon, you weren't ready then. I don't think you could have handled it." Tandy called after him.

"Still wasn't your call to make, Tandy. I had a right to know. And I ain't gettin' into it right now." He called back over his shoulder.

* * *

"I know your momma and your sisters are never on time. We are always waitin' on them." Deacon sat out in the grass with the boys. They were underneath the big shade tree in the front yard. He had his guitar out and was picking out different tunes for them. At almost six months old they were both sitting up and trying to crawl.

He could entertain them for hours by making up songs and singing to them. Now he picked out a bluesy tune for them.

" _Dancin' in the livin' room cuttin' up a rug dancin' with a baby looks more like a hug. We're livin' in a house made of sawmill wood roll over Beethoven never sounded so good."_ He pulled a harmonica out of his shirt pocket and blew on it a few times much to the boys' delight. They both cooed and laughed.

" _Come on, baby, baby let's go. Where we get the money honey I don't know. One more baby's alright by me. We'll just add another limb to the family tree."_ He went back to picking his guitar.

Little Deacon clapped his hands happily and Jaymes chewed on his fist.

" _Well, raisin' up babies is our new sport. You're one day late and I'm a dollar short. Now maybe it was planned or maybe it was a goof, but a cat's just gotta dance on a hot tin roof."_ He picked his guitar a few times and blew on the harmonica again.

" _Come on, baby, baby let's go. Where we get the money honey. I don't know. One more baby's alright by me. We'll just add another limb to the family tree."_ He was making up the words as he went along.

"What do you guys think so far? Want more?" He smiled at the boys.

"Dada, dada," Little Deacon babbled.

"Da," Jaymes squealed.

Deacon paused for a minute and his eyes teared up with joy. "Well, if that ain't the sweetest sound I've ever heard I don't know what is." He kissed both his sons on the head. "I'll take that as a yes."

He started playing his guitar again. _"Well, the lawnmower's broken, the tax is due, and if I find another tick I'm gonna come unglued. We got hand me down clothes and hand me down shoes. We got the big belly momma here we go again blues."_ He blew on the harmonica a few more times. He laughed as the twins babbled. "Sounds like you two are tryin' to sing along with daddy."

" _Come on baby, baby let's go. Where we get the money honey I don't know. One more baby's alright by me. We'll just add another limb to the family tree."_ He picked his guitar and blew on the harmonica a little more while he tried to come up with more words.

" _Baby, whoa, whoa, let's go. Where we get the money hell I don't know. One more baby's alright by me."_ He did some fancy picking on his guitar. _"It's alright, it's alright now baby. We'll just add another limb to the family tree. Oh, we'll just add another limb to the family tree. We'll just add another limb to the family tree."_ He played the same bluesy tune he had started out with.

He looked up when he heard loud whistles and applause. "Hey, ya'll I didn't even know you were here."

"You were just so focused on those boys and busy entertaining them that we didn't want to interrupt you. That was some song, babe." Rayna laughed. She walked over and joined them under the shade tree.

"I make up songs for them all the time. They ain't coordinated enough to handle fishin' poles yet or I would have had them down at the lake fishin'." He smiled.

"I will be so glad when they are big enough for you to take them fishing so you'll stop trying to get me to go." Maddie was such a princess when she wanted to be. She would fish with him as long as he didn't make her touch the worms or the fish.

"I'll help you teach them how to fish, Deacon." Daphne chirped happily.

"That's my girl. I knew I could count on you." Deacon gave her a big grin.

"Was I hearin' things or did two boys just say their first words?" Rayna asked. She knew they had. She had the whole thing recorded.

"They said dada, Ray." He reported a goofy grin on his face.

"Dad, you should have seen your face when they said that. You cried." Maddie teased him.

"I did not cry I had somethin' in my eye." He defended himself.

"Deacon, you cried." Daphne backed her sister up.

"Babe, you were totally cryin'." Rayna nudged him with her shoulder.

"Alright, I'm man enough to admit that I was cryin'. Real men cry when they feel the need to." He relented.

"Can we go inside and see our rooms now?" Daphne bounced on the balls of her feet excitedly.

"Yeah, I suppose we better go inside and have a look. Have to make sure that things are up to you ladies' standards. We have three weeks before school starts and I would like to be moved in before then." Deacon pulled himself up off the ground. "Ray, you wanna grab one of the boys?" He held his hands out and Little Deacon reached for him. He was the daddy's boy and Jaymes was attached to his momma.

"I think the battle lines have been clearly drawn. We know where these two stand." Rayna picked Jaymes up.

"Ain't no battle lines. You can just already tell who is gonna be close to who. This broodin' little monkey and I just get each other." Deacon tossed Little Deacon up in the air and caught him. The baby giggled uncontrollably.

"Deacon John! You know I hate it when you do that with them. It damn near gives me a heart attack." Rayna clutched Jaymes to her chest. She knew he would never intentionally hurt the boys, but he made her nervous sometimes.

"Relax, babe, I wouldn't do that if I thought I was gonna drop 'em." He assured her.

They walked into the house this was the first time they had saw the finished product of all the work the contractors had done. The girls both loved their rooms. Instead of putting the recording studio in the basement like originally planned they'd had an extension put on the house so that the family music space was on the same floor as the living area. The basement had been made into a rec room.

Just outside the kitchen doors there was a huge concrete patio with an Olympic sized swimming pool and hot tub. From there it was possible to get down to the lake where Deacon had had a new dock put in. There was an old barn that they had converted into a performance space just for the hell of it.

"Well, what do ya'll think? Does this meet your approval?" Deacon asked after they had taken a look at everything.

"This is totally awesome." Daphne squealed.

"It's perfect, dad." Maddie agreed.

"Ok, that means we gotta get the moving boxes all packed up. We aren't selling the house, so your beds and things can stay there, but anything you need and want you have to pack." Rayna told them. She and Deacon had agreed it made more sense to hang on to the Belle Meade house than it did to sell it. She didn't want someone snatching it up and turning it into some kind of tourist attraction or something equally bad.

"Why don't you take the kids home and get started on that? I need to stop by the bar and see how things are going for momma and Bev. We open soon and I don't want any last minute surprises comin' up." Deacon suggested.

"Sounds like a good idea to me, babe. I'll see you at home." Rayna pecked his lips.

"I'll see you at home, babe." Deacon kissed her again.

* * *

"This is shapin' up nicely. I think we will be ready for our grand openin' in a couple of weeks. These contractors sure work fast." Deacon took a look around the bar. Everything was pretty much finished. There were still a few things here and there that needed to be fixed, but nothing major.

"Yeah, the Mile Marker will be up and runnin' in two more weeks. The inspectors have all been out and we got glowin' reviews. Tandy has been a huge help gettin' all the paperwork pushed through." Beverly stood behind the bar.

"It helps that her and Lamar know everyone in this town. How are we doin' on gettin' this place staffed?" He asked.

"I'm holdin' interviews and Emily God love her is havin' everyone screened for me. If they come back clean I hire them and if not I think it over before I make a decision either way. We almost have a full roster. I thought I'd let you take care of hirin' the technical people, since you know more about that than we do." June replied.

"I'll take care of it. I know a few really good people who could handle a job like this. I almost forgot we got our liquor license and we are good to go." He reported.

"Great, that is good. We already have people signin' up to play here. I figured that you would want to trot out all the Highway Sixty-five artists on openin' night though." Beverly chimed in.

"Yeah, I was gonna talk to you 'bout that. You're goin' on openin' night too of course. Like I said this is your and momma's place. I'm just the guy bank rollin' it." He smiled at her.

They all turned around when the door opened. A tall athletically built biracial man walked in wearing jeans, a pair of cowboy boots, and a t-shirt.

"We ain't open just yet is there somethin' I can help you with?" Deacon asked him. He gave him a quick once over and he could tell where this was going he prayed that he was wrong though.

"You're Deacon Claybourne right?" The younger man asked him. He was in probably his mid twenties.

"That's me. What can I do for you?" Deacon asked.

"My name is Rhett. My momma's name is Rose Baker. She said that I should get in touch with you." Rhett replied.

Deacon searched his memory banks, but he couldn't come up with a face to match the name or even recognize the name. "I'm sorry, I don't know your momma."

"Let me rephrase that. My name is Rhett Claybourne and I'm pretty sure you're my father." Rhett told him bluntly.

"I'd say there ain't no way in hell, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. How old are you?" Deacon pinched the bridge of his nose. This was the direction he'd hoped this conversation wouldn't take.

"I'm twenty-four," Rhett answered.

Deacon let out a huge breath that created a whistle as it left his pursed lips. "That means you were born in ninety-one. I definitely ain't your father, son. My drinkin' wasn't that bad back then that I would have blacked that out. I can say that I know for a fact that I never cheated on Rayna."

"Look, I asked who my father was and your name was the only one that she gave me. I know you see the resemblance that I see. The year round tan and green eyes aside I look an awful lot like you." Rhett leveled with him.

"I ain't gonna deny that you look like me. I can't deny that at all. I noticed it from the moment you walked in. But I'm tellin' you sure as I stand here that I ain't your daddy." Deacon crossed his arms over his chest and started pacing back and forth.

Beverly drummed her fingers on the top of the bar. Her eyes shifted from her mother to her brother and then over to Rhett. She had an internal discussion with herself for a moment before she spoke. "Deacon isn't your father, but I know who is."

"Oh that son of a bitch! That no good dirty low down son of a bitch." Deacon could tell from the way that Beverly was looking at their mother who Rhett's father was.

"Beverly, I knew. Why do you think I worked so hard and sent part of the money that Deacon sent us off every month? Paul was drunk one night, but it was different he wasn't mean drunk he was talkin' too much drunk. He confessed to havin' another child. I got her name and address out of him. The best thing he did for any of his kids was stay away." June admitted that she had known the truth all along.

"Just when I thought that he was a changed man I find out somethin' else that he did and I wasn't there to stop it." Deacon slammed his fist down on the bar.

"What were you gonna do, Baby Brother? Put him on a leash and force him to keep it in his pants? I think one of you would have killed the other over that idea. And you probably would have drank yourselves to death together." Beverly snorted.

"Oh, wow, Deacon Claybourne put me through college. Holy shit my big brother is Freakin' Deacon Claybourne." Rhett started to freak out.

Deacon ran his hand through his hair. "It sure as hell looks like it." His words came out harsher than he'd intended for them too. He softened when he saw the hurt look on Rhett's face. "I ain't mad at you. And I can't hate you. You're the lucky one. You didn't have to contend with him."

"Look at you." June put her hand on Rhett's cheek. "You look so much like Deacon John. You both took after Paul when it comes to looks, but you're both better men."

"I don't know how you can be so nice to me or why you did anythin' that you did for me." Rhett took a shuddering breath.

"Because I didn't protect my babies from him I wasn't in a position to, but I could protect you from him and make sure you never knew what it felt like to go hungry. Deacon sent that money to make sure his family was taken care of. That included you whether he knew it or not." June rubbed his cheek gently.

Rhett cleared his throat. "I should go."

"Or you could stay. You came to Nashville lookin' for somethin' just like everyone else that's ever ran to this town. Might as well stay 'til you figure out what it is." Deacon told him.

"I wouldn't even know where to start. Or what my plan was. I coasted into town on fumes. I don't know what I expected." Rhett admitted.

"You're a Claybourne I wager to say you know your way 'round a bottle pretty well. You could come on as bartender. That's just a suggestion. Ain't like makin' money is gonna hurt you any." Deacon suggested.

"I've found my way to the bottom of a bottle a time or two. I can pour 'em just as well as I can drink 'em." Rhett gave him a small smile.

"Haven't seen a Claybourne man yet that didn't know the way to the bottom of a whiskey bottle." Beverly rolled her eyes.

"Whiskey and I have a love hate relationship. It goes down so smooth, but when it comes back up it ain't so smooth." Rhett chuckled.

"Whiskey and I are officially broken up. We have been for quite some time." Deacon commented.

"I'm gonna geek out for a minute and tell you how great About a Girl is. Wow, my big brother is Deacon Claybourne. I saw you in Memphis and that was just one hell of a show." Rhett gushed.

Deacon laughed softly. "Yeah, I get that a lot."

"Just As I Am and Route Three brought out emotions in me I didn't even know I had." Rhett went on.

"Alright, alright. That's enough. You should stop by Highway Sixty-five tomorrow mornin'. Do you have a place to stay?" Deacon asked.

"Like I said I hadn't planned that far ahead." Rhett shoved his hands into his pockets.

Deacon reached into his wallet and pulled out several bills. "That should be enough to get you into a nice hotel and give you some spendin' money." He pressed the bills into his hand.

"I can't take this. This isn't why I came here." Rhett tried to give him the money back.

"No, I want you to have that. I take care of what's mine. I may not be your father, but I am your brother. Just take it and come by the office in the mornin' I'm gonna be there all day. We have somethin' that we're gonna need to do." Deacon refused to take the money back. "Wow, I have a brother. I have a brother that ain't much older than my daughter." He sighed.

"I better get goin'." Rhett looked down at the toe of his boots.

"Not without givin' me your cell number you're not." Deacon told him. Rhett gave him his number and he called him right away. "Now you have mine. You call that number if you need anythin' at all. Go on over to the Opryland Hotel. Tell 'em that Deacon sent you they will take good care of you."

"I will thanks." Rhett smiled at him.

"Alright, take care of yourself and I'll see you in the mornin'." Deacon patted him on the back before he left. He turned around to see his mother and sister smiling at him. "What? Did I do somethin' wrong?"

"No you just did everythin' right. You and Beverly both did. I think you've both done some healin'." June smiled at them.

"Ain't like gettin' all crazy is gonna change anythin'. Daddy did what he did like always and the rest of us have to learn to live with it. It ain't fair to take it out on him." All the intensive therapy she'd been in had really done Beverly a lot of good.

"It's been my good luck to be surrounded by incredible women who keep me grounded." He shrugged his shoulders.

"By all accounts I should be takin' a shot glass away from you and havin' Bev committed. That didn't happen though. She handled that very well and you did what you've done since you were eight. You went into daddy mode. You, my sweet boy, took so much on your shoulders that you forgot it was ok to be selfish and think of yourself too. You're the best damn man I've ever known. And that includes your pawpaw. That's sayin' somethin' you know how good he was." June hugged both her children.

"Momma, why didn't you tell us you knew?" Beverly asked.

"Because I felt like I was protectin' all three of you. You two didn't need to know that your daddy hurt me yet again. And Paul didn't need to know that I knew 'bout his other son. He was better off without bein' tormented by him." June answered her.

Deacon cleared his throat. "I need to get goin'. I've got packin' to do. Hopefully we can get moved into the new house sometime this week. I trust that you two have this. I'll get the number of some sound and lighting techs for ya'll and have them come in."

* * *

Rayna answered the front door with a smile on her face. "You must be Rhett come on in." She greeted her husband's younger brother cheerfully. Of course the minute that Deacon told her about Rhett she insisted that they have him come over for dinner.

"Rhett Claybourne," Rhett offered her his hand.

"Rayna Claybourne," Rayna shook his hand.

"I know who are, Ms. Jaymes." Rhett blushed.

"Oh none of that. At home I'm Mrs. Claybourne and you better call me Rayna. Deacon is in the music room I'll show you the way." She led him back to the music room. "Excuse the mess we've been out on tour and we are getting ready to move. It's chaos around here right now."

"That's alright by me. A house is showroom ready a home in lived in." He replied.

"You are most definitely related to Deacon. He can be pretty damn smooth like that too." She chuckled. "Did they treat you alright at the hotel?"

"Yeah, they took real good care of me. I told 'em that Deacon sent me and they put me up in a suite. Don't know how I'm gonna afford that yet, but I'll work it out." He replied.

"Don't worry about it. They should have put you in the Highway Sixty-five suite. We keep it just in case one of the artists ever need it. The cost has already been taken care of. That's only temporary until we figure something else out for you. Don't argue with me about it." She opened the door to the music room.

"There he is. Did they give you any trouble at the front gate?" Deacon put his guitar down and stood up.

"No, I said that my last name was Claybourne and they let me right in." Rhett replied. He stood there looking uneasy. He wasn't sure how to act or what to say. He was in the home of country music royalty and it was a bit overwhelming.

"Good, I'm glad to hear it. Let's make some introductions. That's Maddie, Daphne, and Maddie's boyfriend Jimmy. You came just in time for guitar lessons. More often than not these three are attached to me at the hip. They are like a bad case of strep I can't shake 'em no matter how hard I try." Deacon laughed.

Rhett waved at them shyly.

"Maddie, Daphne, Jimmy. This is my little brother, Rhett Claybourne." Deacon told them.

"It's nice to meet you." Daphne being the bubbly little thing she was went right up and introduced herself to him.

"It's nice to meet you too." Rhett smiled when she gave him a big hug.

"Hey," Maddie nodded her head in his direction.

"Hey," Rhett returned the sentiment.

"JC Grayson," JC shook his hand.

"Rhett," Rhett shook hands with the younger man.

"Rhett, you don't by chance play guitar do you?" Deacon asked him.

"May I?" Rhett gestured to one of the guitars sitting on a stand.

"Help yourself." Deacon gestured for him to take his pick of guitars.

Rhett picked up a guitar and started picking out the tune to one of Deacon's songs. "I'm nowhere near as good as the master, but I can play."

"I'd say that answers that question. With the way you bend those strings people would think you were a Claybourne or somethin'." Deacon grinned at him.

"Ya'll why don't we go help your momma with dinner and give these two a minute alone?" JC suggested.

"JC, she doesn't need our help to order takeout. I'm sure she has that covered by now." Maddie gave him a look.

"Then why don't you show me the new stuff that you got for school?" JC asked.

Daphne grabbed his hand. "JC, I have so much new stuff to show you." She was happy to just go with the flow. It was easier on her that way.

"Fine, I can take the hint. I'm coming." Maddie finally relented.

"Sorry 'bout that teenagers." Deacon chuckled. He wasn't really sure what he was supposed to do or say either.

"It's alright. I was one not that long ago. I know how it is." Rhett assured him.

"So, why don't you tell me a little bit 'bout yourself? You seem to have most of my story down." Deacon waved him into a chair.

"Not much to tell. Like I said it was just me and my momma. I'm from Natchez same as you. I went to the University of Florida. My momma would send me whatever money that you sent your momma I guess. You have no idea how many times that saved my ass or paid for my books. Other than that there's not really anythin' to tell." Rhett gave him a brief summary.

"Imagine that a Claybourne that went to college. You seem to be doin' alright for yourself." Deacon replied.

"Yeah, I wouldn't have come lookin' for you or anythin', but my momma is sick and she didn't want me to be alone. She wanted me to have some family. She told me to come find you and take it from there." Rhett explained.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Deacon told him.

"Thank you for sayin' that. I've had a week or so to digest this information. I can't imagine what it must feel like for you. I can't imagine that you're too thrilled to know that your daddy cheated on your momma or that you have a half black brother." Rhett chuckled nervously.

"Paul is a son of a bitch I've known that for as long as I've been alive. It wasn't the first time that he cheated on my momma and it probably wasn't the last. I'm just glad you got spared the pain of havin' to live with that mean bastard." Deacon ran his hand through his hair. "As for the other part you're family and I don't really give two damns what you look like. You could be purple for all I care. I didn't know 'bout you 'fore, but you can bet if I did I would have made sure you were taken care of."

"You don't have to say all that." Rhett blushed.

"I don't say things that I don't mean. You can ask my youngest little girl 'bout that. She ain't mine biologically, but I love her like she is. This is just gonna take some time for us to both to get used to this brother thing. I think I can figure out how to be a big brother if you're willin' to work with me. I guess we could start with the music. That's how I started with Maddie when I found out she was mine." Deacon suggested.

"Alright, I can work with that." Rhett smiled at him.

"Pick up that guitar again. I can't have a Claybourne soundin' like that when he plays guitar." Deacon picked up his guitar.

Rhett picked up the guitar that he had put down. "Show me what to do."

"Your chord progressions are just a little choppy. If we smooth those out you'll be just fine. You said earlier that you like Just As I Am. Let's start with that." Deacon started to play and show him how it was done.

They had been playing around about fifteen minutes when there was a knock on the door.

"Come on in." Deacon called out.

Mack walked into the room. "Sorry, Deacon, I didn't want to interrupt anything I just had something that I wanted to drop off for you." He handed him a bundle of what looked like backstage passes.

"You're not interrupting, Mack. I've told you that you're welcome anytime." Deacon assured him.

"Those are locker room passes and and basically season tickets to the Preds' games this season. The are right behind the home bench." Mack explained.

"Well, thanks, Mack. You didn't have to do this. I appreciate it." Deacon smiled at him.

"It's no problem at all. You left me plenty of backstage passes and stuff for your shows. The least I can do is return the favor. Besides it's nice to see a friendly face in the crowd sometimes." Mack replied.

"Mack, I'd like for you to meet someone. This is…" Deacon began, but he was cut off.

"No introductions necessary. I know Rhett the Rocket when I see him. I didn't realize that you two knew each other." Mack shook Rhett's hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm a huge fan of yours."

"Thanks, you're too kind. I'm a pretty big fan of yours too." Rhett replied.

"Rhett the Rocket?" Deacon questioned.

"Yeah, Rhett pitched and played outfield for the Gators. Would have gone in the first round of the draft too if he hadn't thrown out his arm." Mack explained. "I didn't know you two knew each other."

"I wasn't surprised at all when you went in the first round of the draft. That's pretty impressive given that you played for Harvard." Rhett added.

"Mack, meet my baby brother Rhett Claybourne." Deacon had to admit that he liked the way that sounded.

"Small world. I didn't make the connection." Mack admitted.

"We didn't know until just today that we were related." Deacon explained to him.

"I just wanted to drop those hockey passes off for you. I'll get out of your hair." Mack said. "Rhett, you ever wanna catch some type of game together and I'm down if I'm free. Deacon knows how to get in touch with me."

"For sure that would be great." Rhett nodded his head in agreement.

"Well, why don't we go see how Ray is doin' with gettin' dinner ordered?" Deacon said once Mack had left.

"That sounds good to me." Rhett agreed. He was starting to feel more at home by the second. If his brother could be that welcoming to a gay hockey player then he probably wasn't going to have any problems with having a half black brother.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I had to throw Rhett in to make things interesting. I kept Lamar around for a reason and it's about to come out. Rhett plays a big part in that. I know that Deacon seems to be just going along with this, but he's digesting the information and he really has become a changed man. Until next time please review.


	58. Chapter 58

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 58

"Deacon, that is not the sound we are going for. That's too outlaw country for my liking and I don't think it fits with our image around here." Rayna nixed the demo that Deacon had played for her.

"What do you think Jimmy and I do?" Deacon laid out across the couch in her office while the boys played in the floor.

"You and Jimmy both have a softer side that comes out with your music. To me this is Waylon Jennings and Merle Haggard. And like I said it doesn't fit our brand. Two outlaws are enough for Highway Sixty-five." She replied.

"I'm tellin' you, babe. If we don't sign this guy someone else will and we will regret it." He tried to reason with her.

"In today's market it's just not what's going to sell. We already have one artist that we are fighting an uphill battle with. We can barely get the more conservative markets to play Will's songs. I don't think we need another artist that we have to fight to get airplay for." She told him.

"And I'm tellin' you that's exactly why we need to sign him. People are tired of this pop country crap. I turn on the radio in the truck and I have to break down and turn on the iPod because quite frankly a lot of it sucks. It doesn't even sound like country music anymore. We could be the label that put country music back on the map." He argued.

"You aren't gonna give this up are you?" She arched her eyebrow at him.

"No, I'm stubborn you know that. I don't give up when I believe in somethin'." He grinned at her.

"I'll agree to take a meeting with him, but I promise you nothing beyond that. I swear you out stubborn our surly teenager. Neither one of you knows how to take no for an answer." She sighed.

"Jimmy Boy has been a good influence on her. She's not so surly anymore. She's open and honest with us. Her little diva fits have been kept to a minimum. I'm not the one she gets those from by the way. I know she's Little Deacon, but I'm not the one who freaks out when every little thing doesn't go my way." He laughed.

"You are so lucky that the boys are between you and this desk or I would throw something at you. I do not have diva fits." She pouted.

"Oh, baby, you are just so cute when you pout." He teased her.

"Don't you have anywhere else that you can be right now?" She asked him.

"Not that I know of. I think that I'm free to torment you all day long, baby. Lucky you." He smirked.

Bucky knocked on the door and stuck his head in. "Deacon, there's someone here to see you. He says that you're expecting him."

"I don't think I'm expectin' anyone right now." Deacon replied. He didn't have his schedule right in front of his face, so he didn't know what his day looked like.

"Buck, did you get a name?" Rayna asked.

"He said that his name is Rhett." Bucky replied.

"Send him in. Don't keep him waiting around. From now on when he comes in you find me or Deacon. Don't tell your mouth of the south girlfriend this, but he's Deacon's baby brother." Rayna told him.

"I'll roll out the red carpet for him from now on then. And I'm not telling Tandy that. She'll press me for answers that I don't have." Bucky threw up his hands in a sign of surrender.

"You ain't gotta roll out the red carpet for him. He ain't Bev. From what I've seen he's kinda like me." Deacon assured him.

"Don't get me started. You don't even want to know the stories I could tell you about Tandy and Bev. I don't get it. They like each other. I'm just gonna tell Rhett to come back here." Bucky walked out shaking his head.

"We really need to pay him more for putting up with the soap opera that is our life." Rayna commented.

"We need to get Lamar to pay him for puttin' up with Tandy." Deacon laughed.

"If daddy thought there was anything in it for him he would do it in a heartbeat." She retorted. Her father wasn't as bad as he used to be, but he was still the same man.

"Makin' Tandy someone else's problem. That benefits all of us." He snorted.

Rhett walked in. "I hope I'm not interruptin' anythin'. Deacon just told me to stop by today and well here I am."

"The only thing you're interrupting is a work related argument that Deacon and I are about to have. Come on in. Don't mind the boys they just hang out in the floor and chill while we work." Rayna waved him into the room.

"I had a good reason for askin' you to stop by and it's not a fun reason. You and I have somethin' that we need to do. We need to do it while I am in the right frame of mind to do it." Deacon sat up on the couch and slipped his feet into his boots.

"Do I want to know?" Rhett asked.

"No, no you do not. I'm not gonna tell you 'til it's too late for you to back out." Deacon stood and stretched his arms above his head. "Have Rusty route all my calls through Bucky. If it's anything artist related I'll end up havin' a conversation with him 'bout it anyway. If it happens to be Beverly related kick it to Tandy. She can deal with it easier than anyone else can."

"Should I have bail money ready?" Rayna wasn't so sure that was a joke.

"I don't know. That's all gonna depend." Deacon replied. "Come on, Rhett let's go get this over with." He walked out of the room and with his brother on his heels.

* * *

Paul's stay in the rehab center had been extended for him to get treatment for his alcohol addiction. He went to daily meetings and he had regular counseling for his anger management problems. He sat back in his recliner watching tv at the moment. He didn't mingle too much with the other residents and that was fine by him.

Deacon marched into the room and turned his tv off.

"What the hell was that for?" Paul demanded.

"That was for you bein' such a rotten piece of shit your whole life. For a minute there I let myself forget who you really were and I started seein' you as human." Deacon seethed.

"What the fuck are you even talkin' 'bout, DJ?" Paul questioned him.

Deacon felt like he'd been socked in the gut when he heard him call him that. As much as he didn't want to admit not all the memories that he had with his father were bad ones. He was helpless to stop the powerful memory that overtook him.

 _Three-year-old Deacon rode up and down the paved strip of driveway on his tricycle. He was clothed only in a pair of shorts. He didn't even have shoes on. His dark hair was plastered to his forehead from the Mississippi summer heat. He was happily cruising along until the neighbor's dog came running over._

 _The big black dog looked like a bear to the little boy. It was about as mean as a bear too. He tried to get off his bike as quickly as he could. He knew to be wary of the dog. In his haste to get away his foot caught on the bike and he went sliding face first across the pavement. He instantly broke out into tears. Before he could get to his feet the dog had him pinned down and was growling._

 _Deacon curled up into a ball to protect himself the best way he knew how. He couldn't find his voice to yell out for help. Just when he thought that he was going to be eaten for sure he heard his father's voice._

" _Go on you bastard, you get the hell away from my boy!" Paul yelled out. He took the beer bottle that was in his hand threw it at the dog as hard as he could._

 _The dog let out a loud yelp of pain and scampered off._

 _Paul picked Deacon up and cradled him against his broad chest. "Shh, you're ok, DJ. It's ok daddy's here. It's only a little bit of blood it's not that bad at all."_

 _Deacon's chin, hands, chest, and knees were all scraped up. He sniffled into his father's chest. "I scared, daddy." He clung to the fabric of Paul's uniform shirt tightly._

" _Daddy took care of it. Daddy is gonna make it all better. Come on now, DJ. We gotta get you cleaned up 'fore your momma gets home and sees you like this." Paul carried Deacon into the house and sat him up on the kitchen counter. He put band aids wherever it looked like they were needed and then he carried his to the couch and sat him on his lap while he watched the ball game._

" _You're safe, DJ, daddy's got you." Paul ran his hand through his son's hair soothingly._

 _Deacon continued to sniffle as he clung tightly to his dad. "I sorry."_

" _You have nothin' to be sorry 'bout. It was that damn dog's fault not yours. You just calm on down now. You can't still be in this state when your momma gets home. She'll have both our asses." Paul leaned down and kissed his head._

"It's been a really long time since you called me DJ, Paul." Deacon took a deep breath in through his nose and blew it out his mouth.

"Would you like to tell me what's got your panties all twisted up?" Paul tried again to get an answer out of him.

"Come on in, no sense in puttin' this off any longer." Deacon called out to Rhett who he'd had wait outside the door.

Rhett walked in and came face to face with his father for the first time.

"Who's this?" Paul asked. "What did you do get me my own personal sober coach?"

"Paul, I'd like for you to meet Rhett Claybourne your other son." Deacon clenched his jaw. He waited for his father to deny it or to make up some excuse.

"I'm kinda surprised that Rose gave you the Claybourne name after I told her that I wasn't interested in bein' a daddy. You turned out good. You turned out strong without me 'round. I was nothin', but toxic to the other two. You were better off without me. I know that you got yourself into college because you have a good head on your shoulders and you're a gifted athlete like your brother always was." Paul commented.

"That's it? That's all you gotta say?" Rhett asked him.

"What do you want me to say? That I'm sorry? I can't say that I am 'cause I'm not. As DJ likes to put it I'm a real nasty son of a bitch. Did you want me 'round to beat on you and beat you down mentally the way I did him and your sister? Trust me, kid, I did you a favor. I wouldn't have been 'round no how. I went to prison the year after you were born." Paul shrugged his shoulders.

"Yeah, she gave me the Claybourne name and told me to be proud of it. That whether I knew it or not it was a big deal. That it belonged to a very good man. I always thought it was my father she was talkin' 'bout, but now I know that she meant my brother. The son you abused took care of the son you abandoned even if neither of us knew it at the time." Rhett shook with pent up emotion.

"That's him Saint Deacon the Righteous patron saint of lost souls and alcoholics everywhere." Paul snorted. And then he softened. "He saved my life even though I once tried to take his. He stepped up and was the man his mother and sister needed him to be. I can't ever make up for what I've done to either one of you. I can just promise that from here on out I'll try to be a better man. This ain't my first stint bein' dried out, but it's gotta be the one that sticks. If I wanna see my grandchildren if only through pictures I gotta abide by that rule."

"Paul, I can't say that I'm ever gonna be able to forgive you. There are just some things that can't be forgiven. It ain't even 'bout the hell you put me through. It's 'bout the fact you almost killed my momma. That bein' said I've been right where you are five times before. I failed four times, but I made the fifth time count for somethin'. That fifth time got me the life I have today. So, I'm livin' proof that a man can change. I ain't sayin' that I want a relationship with you. I'm sayin' that when you wanna start workin' your steps I won't turn you away." Deacon had to give him that much. There was nothing he could do or say that would make amends for the hell that he'd put him through. But if he really wanted to give his father a chance to change he had to let him work his program.

"That's mighty big of you after everythin' I've done and after all the pain I've caused you. I'm sorry just ain't enough. I ain't wastin' this chance you gave me. I mean to change even if it's too little too late to be a father. I would like that opportunity to be a grandfather. 'Cause I got some pretty damn amazin' grandkids that I wanna get to know." Paul replied.

"Well, that ain't just up to me. And that would be under a lot of conditions. If it were to happen. You work your program and we'll see." Deacon wasn't saying yes, but he wasn't saying no either.

"Now, I'm gonna ask you for another thing I got no right to ask of you. You take care of your brother. I know he's a grown man, but if he's gonna be in town he's gonna need someone to take him under their wing. I can't think of anyone better than his big brother for the job." Paul actually did something decent for a change.

"Yeah, I can do that. Ain't like I got a choice in the matter Ray's met him and she's gonna see to it that he's taken care of whether he likes it or not. We both know if it weren't for her you and I probably wouldn't be talkin' right now." Deacon gave him a half smile.

"Deacon, is it alright if we go now?" Rhett asked.

"That's absolutely alright. I can only take him in small doses too." Deacon nodded his head.

"Couldn't deny either of you boys if I wanted to. You both look and act so much like my daddy that it ain't funny." Paul observed.

"As long as I ain't like you I'll take it." Rhett turned and walked out the door.

* * *

"Tandy, lurking in my doorway while I'm trying to work is a little creepy. If you have something you want to know come in and ask me." Rayna looked up from her computer. She was doing the boring part of her job while Deacon was out of the office and the boys were napping in his office. She had a video monitor that she could watch them over.

"How else are you supposed to know I want to talk if I don't stalk you?" Tandy came in and sat down on the couch.

"What do you want to talk about?" Rayna didn't even need to ask that question. She knew what her sister wanted to know, but she was making her work for it.

"I want to hear about the guy that Deacon left with. Are you two courting a new artist behind my back?" Tandy crossed her legs.

"No, that was Rhett." Rayna could tell that she was slowly torturing her sister. That's what she got for not letting her live down the poison ivy incident.

"Rhett who? Is Deacon sponsoring someone? I mean if I needed a sponsor that would be my first choice." Tandy fished for a little more information.

"If I tell you this are you gonna tell everyone in the known universe?" Rayna arched her eyebrow at her.

"No, I'm not gonna tell anyone else." Tandy swore to her.

"He's Deacon's brother." Rayna finally told her.

"He looks like he's closer to Will's age than Deacon's age." Tandy observed.

"He's younger than Will, hell, he's younger than Scarlett. He's twenty-four. As it turns out Paul liked whoring around. I'll be honest Deacon prepared me before I met him last night and I will be damned if I didn't question his fidelity for a minute. That's how much the two of them look alike. I just so happen to know for a fact that he was with me damn near every minute of the day the year that he would have been conceived." Rayna felt bad for even thinking it, but she didn't know what Deacon had been up to when he was off on his benders with Vince.

"Are you sure about that?" Tandy still had the lingering tendency to see the worst in Deacon.

"Tandy, I'm positive. I know my husband. He wouldn't have done anything like that. His drinking wasn't that bad then and he didn't disappear for days at a time. We were in Mississippi when Scarlett was born and we were together the whole time." Rayna shook her head.

"Alright, if you trust him I trust him." Tandy shrugged her shoulders. "Am I gonna need to get the PR team on this?"

"That is up to Deacon. This is his story to tell. There's a lot that it took him years to open up to me about. I don't know that he's gonna wanna make that public. Nor do I think he should if he doesn't want to. He keeps his private life private he's worse about it than I am." Rayna didn't really know what more to say about it than that.

"Just let me know. I have a meeting with Scarlett and Gunnar later to finalize the details of their wedding. Literally the only big thing they have left to do is pick out the invitations. We will see how that goes." Tandy sighed.

"I know Gunnar has been really fun through this whole process. Somehow he ended up on our tour bus and Maddie would be on theirs. He told her just to tell him when and where and he would show up. I think Maddie and Daphne helped her make more decisions than he did. Just let Deacon know if you need a check for anythin'. We are takin' care of everythin'." Rayna laughed.

"I will take it out of his paycheck." Tandy waved it off.

"You have got to quit threatening to take things out of his paycheck. He's threatening to have me dock your check for mental abuse." Rayna replied.

"To do that you would actually have to do payroll checks. I believe that's one of the things I do." Tandy smirked at her.

"You do payroll checks for everyone else. I actually sign your check, Bucky's check, and Deacon's check personally. Because you three are technically record executives." Rayna winked at her.

"But which one of us is the actual CEO around here? I'll let you think about that." Tandy stood up satisfied that she had pumped her sister for all the information that she could get out of her at the moment.

* * *

"How are you doin', babe? You're bein' awful quiet 'bout all this." Rayna packed up a box with some of her dress clothes up in their bedroom. She wouldn't need those right away.

"I'm doin' alright. It ain't like losin' my shit 'bout this is gonna change anythin'. Paul didn't deny it either. He was only surprised that he has Claybourne as his last name. I can't hold it against him that the man that fathered us is a son of a bitch. I think his momma is dyin' and I'm not gonna turn him away if I'm some of the only family that he has left." Deacon taped a box closed.

"That's very adult of you." She commented.

"I'm tryin' to be an adult 'bout this. I mean honestly what can I do 'bout it? I have a baby brother. He and I are more alike than Bev and I are. I would like the chance to get to know him. There's obviously no need to have a DNA test done there's no way he's not a Claybourne, but we decided to have one done just so there are no doubts." He started to pack another box.

She sat down on the bed and held her hand out to him. "Come here, baby."

He took her hand and sat down next to her. "What?"

She sat in his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm sorry that things are so complicated for you. But I am so proud of the way that you're handling this. I'm proud of you for the man that you've become and everything that you've ever done for me."

"I'm just sorry that you have to deal with the soap opera my family is. I don't mean to drag you through all these messes." He kissed the top of her head.

"Baby, that's what being a part of a family is. It's drama and it's juggling personalities. You deal with my family. Why would I mind dealing with yours?" She rubbed her nose against his.

"Cause I basically come from poor white trash and you're used to the gated community type." He replied.

"Don't you ever let me hear you say that about yourself again. You are not poor white trash. You're one of the best men I've ever known in my life. I don't care that you came from nothing. All I care about is you have always been there for me." She kissed him hard to emphasize her point.

He kissed back and tangled his hands up in her hair.

Rayna pulled away and grinned up at him. "You know, Daphne and the boys are with your momma for another few hours and Maddie is doing whatever it is she does with Jimmy. I was thinking that we could take advantage of the alone time."

"Already ahead of you, darlin'." Deacon pulled his shirt over his head and flipped them over so he was laying on top of her. He pinned her underneath him and kissed her neck. He slipped her shirt over her head and he kissed down her chest. Her ample breasts threatened to spill out of the lacy bra she wore. "Have I told have bigger these have gotten since you had the boys." He unhooked her bra and threw it aside. He took her nipple into his mouth.

"Because I'm breastfeeding, babe." She moaned at his touch. She blindly searched for his belt. She unbuckled it and popped the button on his jeans open. She used the heels of her feet to pull his pants and his boxers down.

He laughed and pulled her pants and under off. "Has it been that long already?"

"It's been a day, baby, and it feels like a week." She moaned loudly as he slid into her without any warning.

"Feels more like a month if you ask me." He captured her lips with his as he started to glide in and out of her.

* * *

"So wait, you mean to tell me that momma and Deacon have a brother?" Scarlett asked Maddie unable to believe what she was hearing. They were at Gunnar's house

"Yeah, that's what I'm telling you. He had dinner with us last night. He looks just like dad." Maddie replied.

"I was there and can vouch for her. She's telling the truth. This isn't like that time that she tricked Gunnar into buying more beer for the tour bus by hiding it from him." JC sat on the couch playing around on his guitar.

"That wasn't funny by the way. Why is it always pick on Gunnar day?" Gunnar put his feet up on the coffee table.

"Because you make it too damn easy. I'm new to the group and even I know that." Mack sipped his beer.

"He has a point." Will squeezed his knee affectionately.

"If you don't believe me I'll just call him up right now. He's pretty cool we exchanged phone numbers." Maddie held up her phone.

"For real they aren't fucking with you this time. I went over there last night to give Deacon some hockey tickets." Mack vouched for them. He looked at Will and Gunnar. "You two have heard of Rhett the Rocket right?"

"Yeah, only one of the best college baseball players of all times. A damn shame he didn't get to go pro." Gunnar answered.

"He is arguably the best college baseball player of our time." Will corrected him.

"What's his last name?" Mack asked.

"Rhett the Rocket Claybourne. Oh, holy shit. Scarlett, your uncle is college athlete royalty." Gunnar exclaimed.

"Maddie, call him. You know frick and frack wanna meet him." JC laughed.

"Oh, absolutely call him. Now I'm curious." Scarlett agreed.

Maddie texted Rhett and fifteen minutes later he showed up at Gunnar's house.

"Rhett, let me introduce you to the gang. We are commonly referred to as Deacon Claybourne's Wayward Musicians." JC took charge of the situation. "We have Will, Mack, Gunnar, and Scarlett." He pointed at each person as he spoke.

"You look so much like Uncle Deacon and Paul that it isn't funny." Scarlett's mouth hung open a little bit.

"You must be my other niece. Not that I expect you to call me uncle or anythin' you're older than I am." Rhett chuckled nervously.

"I'm the oldest niece. There are three of us. One of us is absolutely adorable, the only one to put it bluntly is a moody bitch, and then the other one has a great personality. I'll leave it up to you to guess which one is which." Scarlett put him at ease.

"Daphne is the adorable one that goes without sayin'. It also goes without sayin' that the teenager is the moody bitch. That means you have the great personality." Rhett grinned.

"Don't mess with me, Rhett. My boyfriend is a Green Beret he can kick your ass with one hand tied behind his back. And his best friend's boyfriend is supposedly one of the best hockey players in the league he will have no problem taking you out. Trust me these four boys do whatever I ask them to. You don't want to get on my bad side. I'm sure you could probably take Gunnar, but Jayme could take Gunnar." Maddie teased him.

"Rhett, ignore her and come make yourself comfortable. This is my fiancé Gunnar. You're just in time to help us go over the menu for our weddin' reception. It's one of the things that our planner is makin' us do ourselves. You don't get a choice in the matter you're the tie breaker." Scarlett installed him on the couch next to JC.

"Well, I'll help out anyway that I can." Rhett smiled.

"We're dealin' with Gunnar we need all the help we can get." Will joked.

"You can kiss my ass and find your own damn place to live if you're gonna keep this up. I have a great idea we will just switch roommates. Scarlett is movin' in here anyway you can go live with JC at Deacon's old place sooner than expected." Gunnar threatened him.

"Texas Forever!" JC and Will whooped at the same time.

"Cause that's a really great idea, Gunnar. Let's put the two Texans together in the same house. It'll become a frat house and I will never be able to show my face around there." Mack teased.

"Don't pay them no mind, Rhett. Lord knows the rest of us started ignorin' them a long time ago." Scarlett rolled her eyes.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	59. Chapter 59

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 59

"Look at Ol' Blue and Elvis nappin' together like that. It's like Elvis knows that he's his big brother and he has to protect him." JC pointed to where Elvis and Blue laid curled up together on the rug.

"That is pretty sweet." Maddie snuggled into him and pulled a blanket up around them. They were having a movie marathon. The only reason the living room was still intact was because most of the stuff in it wasn't going to the new house.

He wrapped his arm around her and tried to focus on the chick flick that she was forcing him to watch. "You ok? You seem kinda quiet today, Cricket."

"I just can't believe that this is our last day in this house. I really love the new house and I'm excited to start something new, but I'm going to miss it. This is the only home I've ever known." She admitted to him.

"Without the people you love in it a house isn't a home. It's just four walls and plaster. I know that you have a lot of memories here, but you'll make new memories. Take it from a guy that was bounced 'round a lot you've got it pretty damn good." He kissed the top of her head.

"You are the most perfect boyfriend in the whole world." She laid on top of him and kissed his lips.

"You're pretty perfect too, Cricket." He whispered against her lips.

"It is too early in the morning for you two to be this disgustingly cute. I'm not even gonna ask why Jimmy is here at five in the morning. All I care about is it's my night to be up with the twins. And of course they are hungry right now." Rayna didn't bother to turn the lights on. She sat down in the chair with one of the boys in each of her arms.

"Your insomniac recovering alcoholic husband had him over here all night writing songs. When I asked if he could stay and have a movie marathon about an hour ago he said that was fine he trusts us. That as long as one of you are here having him over isn't a big deal." Maddie explained to her.

"Yeah, that's fine." Rayna was clearly half asleep. Both the boys started to fuss. "Ok, momma knows. Just give me a minute to get my top pulled down." She started to pull her shirt down.

"Mom! Oh my God, no don't do that. My boyfriend is in the room." Maddie shrieked. She covered her eyes with one hand and JC's with the other. "Jimmy, go to the kitchen and get their bottles without looking in my mom's direction."

"Maddie, you are overreacting people like you are why women can't breastfeed in public. It's not a sexual thing trust me on that it hurts. Wait until you have teeth digging into your nipples. It's not always a fun experience." Rayna rolled her eyes.

"Mom, please just stop talking. I'm begging you." Maddie pleaded with her.

JC got up and retrieved two bottles from the kitchen. "I got 'em."

Maddie took Deacon and Jaymes from her mother. "We've got them go back to bed, mom. You're half asleep anyway."

"Thank you, you are both life savers. I just need a little bit more sleep. I don't have to lecture you two about the dangers of sex you have two living breathing reminders." Rayna kissed Maddie and JC on the head and went back up to her bedroom.

"Mom, you're killing me." Maddie groaned.

JC quickly took Deacon out of Maddie's arms before she saddled him with Jaymes. That boy still spit up all over anyone and anything that got in his way. "Don't look at me like that. I fed Jayme the last time we babysat them. It's my turn to get the easy one." He laughed when she glared at him.

"Jayme likes to spit up in peoples' mouths. So far I've dodged that bullet I would like to keep that perfect record." Maddie huffed.

"Here's an idea. Don't put him anywhere near your mouth and you won't have that problem." He pointed out to her.

"I will totally throw you out of here and make you go home." She threatened him.

"If you did that who would help you feed the boys?" He smirked.

"Just shut up and feed him." She couldn't argue with his logic.

"That's what I thought." He winked at her.

"You're lucky that I'm busy feeding the human geyser right now or I would hit you." She glared at him. She had to fight off a smile. She couldn't stay mad at him even if she wanted to.

"Now, Cricket, how many times have we discussed the fact that physically you can't hurt me? Not even the hockey player will go up against me because he knows I can kick his ass." He laughed.

"You wouldn't dare touch me and we both know that. And not just because my daddy would kill you with his bare hands, but because that's not who you are." She leaned over and stole a quick kiss from him.

"Hell no I wouldn't touch you and I would kill anyone who did before your daddy even got the chance to think 'bout it. But that still doesn't mean I'm scared of you." He smiled against her lips.

"JC, you make me fall for you a little more every day." She rubbed their noses together.

"I've been fallin' for you since the minute I laid eyes on ya. You've got me under your spell and I don't ever wanna let you go." He gave her a sexy grin.

* * *

"Alright, Catydid, open up for momma. You are havin' pears for breakfast this mornin'. Daddy says that you like these. I've seen you eat these for him, baby girl." Juliette cooed at her daughter as she tried to get her to eat.

Avery stopped out of sight for a moment and watched his wife and daughter together. When Juliette had gotten sick he thought that they would never have this level of domestic bliss. He was glad that he hadn't given up on her and that she hadn't given up on herself. "Look at how cute my two girls are together." He finally made his presence known.

"Don't look at me I was on a plane most of the night. I know that I have to look like hell." She blushed.

He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "You look gorgeous like always. This is a good surprise I didn't think you'd be home this early. Thank you for letting me sleep in." He placed a kiss on her neck.

"Some PR thing that I had to do today got canceled and I decided I would just come home to my amazin' husband and daughter." She leaned back against him.

"It's good to have you home for a little while. We normally bunk up over at Gunnar's when you're out of town." He rested his chin on her shoulder.

"It's good to be home. I'm savin' my little girl from the three men and a baby routine ya'll pull with her and she won't even show her gratitude by eatin' for me." She laughed.

"Because you're trying to feed her pears. She's not really a fan of those right now. She likes apples and peaches, but she's gotten over her love affair with pears. I don't understand it either. She liked them just fine one morning and I couldn't get her to touch them the next." He chuckled.

"It seems like we have a little diva on our hands already. I don't know that that's gonna work out so well. There's only room for one of those in this house and momma already has that spot claimed for herself." She kissed her daughter's head and got a jar of peaches out. She had no problem getting her to eat those.

"She goes through phases with her food. Be glad that you missed out on the strained pea phase. Those were disgusting. According to my mom and Rayna both it's normal and all babies do it. Ours isn't just being picky and it's not just because you're her momma and her moods change at the drop of a hat." He bit his lip. He realized after the words had left his mouth how insensitive they had sounded.

"You get parenting advice from Rayna now? What's next guitar lessons with Deacon? I will have you know that I am absolutely delightful and you love me mood swings and all." Juliette sounded amused. She knew that he hadn't meant anything with his last comment. She could admit that she was moody even on a good day. She had weathered the storm of her post partum and she was mostly back to normal now.

"When it's three in the morning and I'm out on tour with no one else to talk to and Cadence is screaming her head off you bet I get parenting advice from Rayna. As it turns out sometimes she just gets tired of daddy and needs another person to hold her. More often than not that person is Aunt Rayna. She's pretty fond of Scarlett, Gunnar, Will, JC, and Maddie too. But, I think her Uncle Deacon is one of her favorite people in the world." Avery replied.

"What woman doesn't love Deacon Claybourne? More accurately who doesn't like him? He's one of the best people that I've ever met. He's been really good to us and that's how I know he was the perfect choice for Cadence's godfather." She kept feeding the baby.

He put his fingers under chin and turned her head to kiss her. "I better be the only man that you're in love with."

"You've got nothin' to worry about. Rayna can have the broody silent type. I'll take my sexy bad boy type husband over that any day of the week." She grinned against his lips.

"Mmm, that's what I thought. Now, how about I make us some breakfast while you finish feeding Miss Princess?" He suggested.

"That sounds perfect. I just put a fresh pot of coffee on. Get to work, baby, we both know that cookin' isn't one of my specialties. Gotta have you earn your keep around here." She teased him.

"Gotta be your manservant is more like it, but I'll take it." He kissed her neck again and whispered in her ear. "And later I'll take you."

"Don't make promises that you don't intend on keepin'." She winked at him.

"You better believe that that's one promise I intend to keep." He blew her a kiss.

"What does your day look like?" She asked him.

"I have a photo shoot today. Then I'm meeting with either Glenn or Bucky to plan my album launch." He replied.

"Look at you. I'm glad that you finally got your shot, babe." She was extremely proud of her husband.

"Thanks, baby. Who would have known that My ex and her fiancé would have been the reason that I got another shot? I'm doin' it the right way this time. I'm not gonna be burning my masters in a burn barrel this time." He chuckled.

"That would probably be a wise idea and wouldn't work anyway. They back everythin' up digitally." She laughed at him.

"You think you're the only one who's gotten older and wiser and learned from her mistakes?" He teased.

"I think you're a pain in the ass, but I love you anyway." Juliette rolled her eyes at him.

"I love you, babe." Avery laughed.

* * *

Lamar sat in a chair in the den of his home. He didn't bother to stand when his visitor entered the room. "Come on in and have a seat, Cole."

Coleman Carlisle chose to stand. "Lamar, I'm only here out of respect for the relationship that we used to have."

"Cole, I wouldn't have asked you here and pulled you away from your family unless I was interested in making it right." Lamar told him. "Now, please have a seat."

Coleman sat down this time. He accepted the drink that Lamar poured for him. "What did you have in mind, Lamar?"

"How would you like to be the next mayor of Nashville?" Lamar asked him.

"I'm not interested in being your puppet. If that was the only reason that you asked me here you've wasted both our time." Coleman started to stand up.

"Just hear me out. I don't want you to be my puppet. The last time I tried that it obviously didn't work out so well for me." Lamar grumbled. Teddy had really screwed things up by the numbers.

"Then what is your play here, Lamar? You never do anything without a purpose." Coleman called him out.

"I'm not going to lie to you I still want my baseball stadium and I even have a plan to pay for it that doesn't involve anything remotely illegal. It would be good for the city, it would create jobs, and it would give Nashville another venue. The plan is to eventually have a baseball team here even if that means we have to build one ourselves." Lamar explained to him.

"What does that have to do with me? Do you not work well with the interim mayor?" Coleman knew to question his motives.

"This is more like righting a wrong. I should have never backed Teddy for mayor. It was an error in judgment and rarely do I make those. I should have hitched my wagon to you to begin with. You've got the strength to tell me no when I'm out of bounds there aren't many people that will do that." Lamar answered smoothly.

"Lamar, let's say that I go through with this with you. What's to stop you from turning on me?" Coleman asked.

"I'm not stupid I'm not going to bite the hand that's feeding me." Lamar took out a cigar and lit it.

"If I do this we are going to run it cleanly. I don't want the office being bought for me." Coleman laid down his list of demands.

"I can work with that. I don't need to play dirty to get you into office. No one likes the acting mayor. They know and trust you. It wouldn't be that hard to get the whole council to endorse you. You're a hometown boy and you could really make a difference. What do you say?" Lamar played on his loyalties.

"I say you have yourself a deal. I have to run it by Audrey first of course, but she's been wanting to come back home. But, Lamar, if you cross me I have enough dirt on you to bury you for the rest of your life." Coleman warned him.

"Fair enough. You'll run your office with minimal interference from me and I'll get my stadium." Lamar replied. He offered him his hand.

"We will do some real good for this city together." Coleman took his offered hand and shook it.

"That we will, my boy, that we will." Lamar agreed.

"What are your plans for paying for this stadium?" Coleman asked him.

"Part of that hinges on my daughter's cooperation. If we use it for concerts then that helps pay part of the cost. If I can get her to agree to one big concert a month from one of her artists then that solves that. We raise our own minor league team. I've already been dealing with the bigwigs in the MLB. We would be an independent farm team and any team in the majors would be able to sign our players. That also helps to cover the cost. The high schools have playoffs we could let them do it in style." Lamar gave him part of his plan.

"Maybe you let me work on Rayna if we get to go through with this. You two have a tendency to clash and it's been that way for as long as I can remember." Coleman advised him.

"I told you I'm a changed man, Cole. We don't get into it near as often as we used to. I've even learned to tolerate Deacon. I am capable of being a somewhat better person." Lamar told him.

"You only tolerate Deacon because he gave you grandsons and we both know that." Coleman laughed.

"It's as good a reason to like anyone as any I suppose. Have you seen them?" Lamar shrugged his shoulders.

"Only in pictures they look so much like him. I'm sure you're already grooming them to take over the business one day." Coleman chuckled.

"That really would give Rayna a heart attack." Lamar laughed lightly. "I think that's enough business for one day. You go on and get back to your family. I'll let you know more details as I have them. You just talk to your wife and start getting your campaign ready."

"I can do that." Coleman agreed.

"Take care of yourself, Cole." Lamar shook his hand.

"You too, Lamar." Coleman replied.

* * *

"Scarlett, can you give me an idea at how close I am to being in the right spot, babe? I kinda can't see what I'm doing." Gunnar had several cases of booze stacked on a dolly and he was trying to put them in the store room at the Mile Marker.

"Just come straight ahead and drop them right there. You have vodka on that cart and that's where that goes." Scarlett directed him. Somehow they had gotten talked into unloading the booze shipment for the bar.

"Where does the whiskey go?" Will asked.

"That goes along the back wall, Will." Beverly answered him.

"I've got scotch on this cart." Mack reported.

"Put that caddy corner to the whiskey, Mack." June directed him.

"Someone open the cooler door for me I can't see. I've got beer." Rhett called out. He was fitting right in with everyone else like he belonged there.

"I got ya, Rhett." Scarlett opened the door for him.

"Thank ya, much." Rhett pushed the cart into the cooler.

"Rhett, if you're done with that some of it needs to go in the fridge under the bar." Beverly instructed him.

"That was my last load. I'll get it stocked." Rhett four different cases of beer and carried them out to the bar area.

"I'll help him." Mack volunteered. Those two had hit it off right away because they were both athletes.

"Look at ya'll workin' your asses off. Momma, I brought you two more for you to put to work. Have 'em count cocktail napkins for all I care. Just so long as it gets 'em outta my house and I ain't gotta watch 'em make googly eyes at each other for a little while." Deacon pointed to Maddie and JC.

"Believe me I can use 'em. I need another strong back and Maddie can help Scarlett inventory stuff. We got our first food shipment yesterday and that needs to be counted." June replied.

"Sounds good to me. They just really needed somethin' to do. I've got movers goin' in and out of the house and these two were holdin' up the progress." Deacon joked.

"Don't believe your son, mawmaw. He asked us to come help out and we told him that we would." Maddie defended.

"Actually he asked me to help out and you volunteered me for the job." JC corrected her.

"It doesn't matter either way we both ended up here." Maddie rolled her eyes at him.

"Roll your eyes at me one more time today, Cricket, and I'm gonna rethink why I enjoy your company so much." JC joked.

"JC, stop runnin' your mouth. She's a woman you're not gonna win an argument with her. Come help me and Gunnar get the rest of the liquor moved in back here." Will told his friend.

"I'm comin'. I'm here now the rest of you pretty boys can relax I'll show you how it's done." JC laughed.

"Those two are gonna kill each other when they move in together." Scarlett observed.

"They ain't gonna kill each other, but it's gonna get interesting to say the least." Deacon laughed. "Where's Rhett?" He looked around for his brother.

"I have him stocking the bar." Beverly answered. "Well there he is now."

Rhett came back to grab another load of beer. "Did I do somethin' wrong?"

"No, come here I wanna have a word with you." Deacon gestured for him to follow him back out front so they could talk.

"What do you need, Deacon?" Rhett asked.

Deacon pulled a key out of his pocket and tossed it to him. "That's a key to my old place. It gets you out of the hotel and into a more permanent place. You're gonna have two roommates, but JC and Will are both pretty alright guys."

"Deacon, you don't have to do this. I told you that I didn't come here for this." Rhett put the key in his pocket.

"I don't have to do it, but I want to. You're my brother, Rhett. I'm gonna help you out. I thought you'd wanna know the DNA test came back and we are for sure brothers. Not that I ever doubted that to begin with. If you want we can see about getting your momma moved down here and into the hospital or somethin." Deacon told him.

"I didn't doubt it either. She doesn't want that. She also doesn't want me to sit 'round and watch her die. She said I'd know when it's time to come back home and say my goodbyes. That she doesn't want what she looked like when she was dyin' to be the way that I remember her. So, I'm just tryin' my best right now." Rhett shrugged his shoulders.

"You cope however you need to and know that I'm here for ya anytime day or night for whatever you need. It's probably best for you to keep busy right now. I have plenty of things that I can keep you busy with. You ever want a day job stop by Highway Sixty-five and I'm sure that we can find somethin' for you to do." Deacon tried to reassure him.

"You've more than proven that you don't have to tell me. I know that I can lean on you if I have to. You're right I just need to keep busy and I may take you up on that offer. Though I don't know a whole lot 'bout the music business I'm sure that I could learn. I have a college degree that I ain't usin'. I've spent the last couple years workin' on the damn docks as a matter of fact just so I could be close to my momma." Rhett replied.

"Like I said everyone that's ever run to this city has come lookin' for somethin'. It takes awhile, but you'll figure out what it is sooner or later. You've got family here that you can count on. Just wait until you get to go to your first big music industry event. Not tomorrow, but the day after Ray and I are playin' a small show at the Opry keep that night open I want you to come." Deacon patted him on the back.

"That sounds great to me." Rhett smiled.

"I better stop distractin' you fore momma and Bev both have my ass for keepin' you from your work. The women in my life run me ragged, but I love 'em anyway." Deacon chuckled. "See you later, little brother."

"See you later, big brother." Rhett gave him a quick hug. "Thanks for everythin'."

"It's my pleasure, now get your ass back to work." Deacon hugged him back.

* * *

"Ray, I hate to just barge in like this, but I think we may have an issue." Bucky stuck his head into Rayna's office.

"Buck, when don't we have an issue? It we didn't have an issue I wouldn't know how to act. I'm only in the middle of tryin' to move and tryin' to get caught up on things that I missed while I was out on tour." Rayna sighed. She looked down in the floor where the boys were playing and that made her smile. "You two just stay cute and happy. You make things easy on your momma."

He held his tablet to his chest and took a breath before he showed her. "Here I'll just let you look at that."

She took the tablet from him and studied the picture. It was of Deacon and Rhett coming out of the clinic where they'd had their DNA test run. "You've gotta be kidding me. Deacon Claybourne's love child." She read the caption under the picture.

"Normally I'd handle it myself, but I know how private Deacon is and I thought I'd let you talk to him about it. I've already had several calls about it." He explained to her.

"Bucky, I'm sure you know for right now the party line is no comment. I'll talk to Deacon about this and see how he wants to handle it." She replied.

"Handle what?" Deacon walked in just in time to catch the tail end of the conversation.

"Oh nothing really. Just someone got a pretty good picture of you and Rhett walking out of the DNA testing center together and now they are speculating that you have a love child." She said it like it was the most normal thing in the world.

Deacon ran his hands over his face. "No comment at least not until I talk to Rhett about it. I don't understand why everyone thinks that every damn thing is their business." He laid down in the floor next to the boys they always managed to improve his mood no matter how bad it was.

"I will leave you two to deal with this. I just thought I'd let you know." Bucky took his leave.

"How you gonna handle this, babe?" She asked him.

"If Rhett's agreeable to it I'm gonna fix their asses good." He retorted.

"I don't wanna know what that means so I'm not gonna ask." She knew better than to ask what went on in his head when he got pissed off.

"Dada, dada," Little Deacon babbled. He rolled over from his back onto his stomach and he army crawled over to where Deacon laid.

"Well, look at you, Outlaw. You just crawled." Deacon's face lit up. He picked his son up and kissed his cheek before lifting him up into the air.

Little Deacon giggled loudly.

"Go on with your little mean self." Deacon sat him back on the floor.

Jaymes wouldn't let himself be outdone by his brother. He crawled over to his father. "Da!" He squealed.

"Hello, Rebel, you are gettin' too big already." He picked him up and kissed him too.

"My three boys." Rayna got up from behind her desk and kissed all three of them. "You two have no idea how much you just improved your daddy's mood. Momma is so proud of you. Maddie and Daphne are gonna be so upset that they missed this. They've been tryin' to get you to crawl all week."

"We won't tell 'em and we'll let 'em be surprised when they do it for 'em. Where is the Squirt by the way?" Deacon knew where all his kids were, but Daphne.

"She is actually back in the writer's room getting some one on one time with Sadie. I thought that it would be good for her to develop her talent without her sister. I hate to say it, but I don't know how much longer Maddie is gonna go along with this whole bein' a duo thing. She's got a boyfriend and she hangs out with all these older artists." She laid down in the floor with them.

"I know I've sensed the change in that dynamic too. Maybe that's somethin' that we are gonna need to rethink. They are in two separate places in their lives. I'm not sayin' that we have 'em stop makin' music together, but maybe we let Maddie do a little findin' out who she is as an artist and we keep her on a little bit of a leash." He mused. He wanted to nip that in the bud before it became a problem.

"I think you might be right 'bout that. I don't know what I'd do without you sometimes." She leaned over and kissed him softly.

"You ain't ever gonna have to find out." He smiled against her lips.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Given what we've been getting from the show lately I thought that I would just throw in some fluff to make things a little better. Until next time please review.


	60. Chapter 60

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 60

"Wow, you look pretty damn amazin' for a woman that's had four babies." Deacon walked out of the bathroom and studied his wife from behind. She wore a pair of tight fitting jeans and sequined top.

"You're pretty damn handsome for a guy who wasn't supposed to live this long." Rayna turned around and smiled at him. He wore his customary boots, jeans, and flannel.

He smiled back and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. He rested his chin on her shoulder. "What the hell made you wanna love a man who was gonna die young?" He quoted one of his songs to her.

"I didn't have much of a choice in the matter. I was a goner the minute I laid eyes on you." She put her hands on top of his.

"I have to love you an awful lot too, cause if I didn't I'd probably kill you. Ray, we've got a bigger bathroom here than at the old house and you still have every inch of the counter occupied by your makeup and stuff. What the hell do you need all that for? You are absolutely gorgeous first thing in the mornin' when you wake up." He kissed her cheek.

"I need the room, babe, but you are very sweet to say that about me. All that stuff is how I still look this good." She leaned back against him.

"I'm just surprised it took you two weeks to completely take over the bathroom. I would have thought it would have taken you less time." He laughed.

"I had to give you a couple weeks of domestic bliss. After we spent all summer on a tour bus together." She turned in his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Well, thank you for that. I was startin' to think that you had a personality transplant or somethin'." He kissed her slowly. He let his hands wander to her ass.

"Don't you start that right now. We have to be at someone's grand opening soon. We have to go make sure those girls are ready and we have to make sure that the boys are squared away with the nanny." She reminded him.

"I think momma and Bev can handle things just fine without us for a little while. We don't have to worry 'bout the girls they heard the word perform I'm sure that they've been ready for hours. The boys love the nanny this nanny is good." He pulled her closer to him.

"Not happenin', pal. We go where this is headed and I have to start getting ready all over again." She pointed out.

"To be continued later then." He buried his face in her neck and nibbled on it playfully.

"You can count on that. Now, let's go get those two girls moving." She pulled away from him before he broke down her resolve.

"Let's go get 'em, momma." He smacked her ass when she turned her back to him.

* * *

"I'd like to welcome ya'll to the grand openin' of the Mile Marker. As you can see it's a bit of a family affair so let me introduce you to the family." Deacon stood up in front of a packed house. "First we have my wife Rayna Jaymes ya'll might've heard a thing or two 'bout her. She thinks she's a big deal in this town or somethin'." He teased.

"Darlin', I don't think I know." Rayna bantered back.

He moved on to June next. "Next we have my momma June Claybourne this is really her place she's just lettin' me borrow the stage." He kissed his mother's cheek.

"That brings us to this thing here that I don't like to claim. My sister Beverly O'Connor. She's the other manager." He put his arm around Beverly.

"We have my niece Scarlett O'Connor and my soon to be nephew Gunnar Scott. I think ya'll might have heard a thing or two 'bout them too." Deacon chuckled.

"Now to this guy here." He stopped next to Rhett. "This guy has been the cause of a lot of speculation recently. Tonight we are gonna set the record straight. This is my baby brother Rhett Claybourne. Rhett, say hi to everybody."

Rhett waved at the crowd. "Hey, ya'll."

Deacon patted him on the back and moved on to Maddie and Daphne. "These two I ain't got no idea where they came from. The only thing I know is they live in my house, they eat all my food, and the law says I have to take care of them until they are eighteen." He laughed when he saw that he was embarrassing Maddie. It was one of his favorite past times. "Ya'll give it up for my incredibly talented daughters Maddie and Daphne Claybourne."

"We got a really great show planned for ya'll tonight. For those of you who caught the Angels and Outlaws tour you know what you're in for. And for those of you who missed it you're on for a real treat." He said and got a loud cheer from the crowd.

"Before we do that though. We all held a meeting without Deacon, because he does what he's told for the most part." Rayna joked and she got the expected laughter. "We decided that there was only one way to do this right. Before Deacon and I started making music together there was someone else that he made pretty great music with. So, kicking it off as the Mile Markers' first performers put your hands together for Deacon Claybourne and Beverly O'Connor."

"Well, Bev, they kinda put us on the spot here. It's been awhile since we sang together. Any ideas?" Deacon picked up his guitar and put the strap around his neck.

"Baby Brother, I think it's only fittin' that we do Family Tradition." Beverly suggested.

"I think you're right." Deacon started to play the song.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Alright, who's night is it to open first? I know we ended the tour with all of us. How are doin' this tonight?" Deacon asked after he came off the stage.

"Angels opened last it's the Outlaws turn tonight." Rayna supplied for him.

"Jimmy, you're up, boy. Go show 'em how it's done." Deacon called out.

"I've got my business handled." JC assured him. He took the stage.

"You know we need to start thinking album launch for him right? He's one song away from a finished album." Bucky just had to bring up business.

"Buck, we have a finished album. Wait until you hear the song he's 'bout to play." Deacon grinned.

"I'll be the judge of that after I hear it." Bucky retorted.

"How ya'll doin' tonight? I thought I'd open us up with a new one I just wrote." JC spoke into the mic and strummed his guitar.

" _Gonna drive like hell through your neighborhood park this Silverado on your front lawn. Crank up a little Hank sit on the hood and drink. I'm about to get my pissed off on."_

"So far so good." Rayna nodded her head.

" _I'm gonna aim my headlights into your bedroom windows throw empty beer cans at both of your shadows. I didn't come here to start a fight, but I'm up for anythin' tonight. You know you broke the wrong heart baby and drove me redneck crazy."_ JC belted out.

" _Wish I knew how long it's been goin' on. How long you've been gettin' some on the side. Nah, he can't amount to much by the look of that little truck. Well, he won't be gettin' any sleep tonight."_

"Deacon, you struck gold with that boy yet again. How do you get that out of these artists? That's exactly the kind of song he needed on that album to round out his sound." Bucky clapped him on the back.

"You wanted beer and truck on the album just to appease the market. I had him come over in the middle of the damn night to write and I kept him there a good long while until we had this nailed down." Deacon replied.

" _I'm gonna aim my headlights into your bedroom windows throw empty beer cans at both of your shadows. I didn't come here to start a fight, but I'm up for anythin' tonight. You know you broke the wrong heart baby and drove me redneck crazy. Redneck crazy."_ JC launched into his guitar solo.

" _Did you think I'd wish you both the best endless love and happiness? You know that's just not the kind of man I am. I'm the kind that shows up at your house at three AM."_

" _I'm gonna aim my headlights into your bedroom windows throw empty beer cans at both of your shadows. I didn't come here to start a fight, but I'm up for anythin' tonight. You gone and broke the wrong heart baby and drove me redneck crazy. You drove me redneck crazy, oh yeah yeah."_ He finished to the hearty applause of the audience.

"How'd I do, Deacon?" JC asked when he left the stage. Since he'd started dating Maddie he'd dropped the uncle from Deacon's name.

"Jimmy, I've got some bad news for you." Deacon did his best to keep a solemn look on his face.

"What is it?" JC groaned.

"I'm gonna have to fire you as my bandleader." Deacon went on.

"What? Why? Did I do somethin' wrong?" JC sounded panicked.

"I'm gonna have fire you as my bandleader so you can go do your own thing as a solo artist." Deacon smiled at him.

"That's not all. We are voiding that apprentice contract that you signed and as of right now you're a fully contracted artist with Highway Sixty-five." Rayna added.

"Holy shit, I don't even know what to say to that. Wow, just I'm floored." JC grinned from ear to ear. "Cricket, did you hear that?" He turned to Maddie.

"I heard and I'm so proud of you, babe." Maddie hugged him. They were still doing their best to keep their relationship under wraps.

"Ok, that's it. If no one else is gonna ask I will. Why in God's name do you call her that?" Tandy asked him.

"That's short for Cross Eyed Cricket. I'll leave you to guess 'bout the rest." JC laughed.

"Because when she's drunk her eyes cross right? She gets that from her momma. And that's how you picked up that name. That's what your daddy and I called Rayna for years. It was more Vince than me." Deacon had known where that nickname came from all along he just didn't want to think about it.

"Deacon, do not start telling those stories." Rayna warned him.

"I'm just sayin', babe." Deacon laughed.

"Yeah, that's why I call her that." JC laughed with Deacon.

"Babe, do not tell on me." Maddie slapped his chest playfully.

"I ain't tellin' nothin' they didn't already know. Both times I saw you drunk they found out 'bout it anyway." JC pointed out.

"JC, when your girlfriend tells you to stop talking you stop talking. That's how Bucky and Deacon have survived so long with me and Rayna." Tandy patted him on the back.

"Jimmy, don't listen to anything she says no one else does. We let her talk just to hear herself." Rayna laughed.

"This right here is why if I have a choice in the matter I talk to Sadie or Bev." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"You love me don't pretend like you don't." Rayna winked at her.

"I don't dislike you let's just go with that." Tandy smirked.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Deacon, there you are. You've got quite the setup here." Coleman approached Deacon.

"Cole, what the hell are you doin' here? It's great to see you." Deacon greeted his friend excitedly.

"I heard about this and I had to show up. I've been meaning to see you for a couple weeks now. I wanted to let you know in person that I'm back in town for good." Coleman shook his hand.

"That's 'bout the best news I heard all day, Cole. It's good to have you back." Deacon hugged him.

"It's good to be back. As your former sponsor I have to ask. Do you think owning a bar is the best idea?" Coleman asked him.

"Cole, I just own it. It's my momma's and my sister's. I appreciate the concern, but I'm gonna be ok. I'm not in the same headspace that I was the last time you saw me." Deacon assured him.

"I can see that. Being a happily married man looks good on you. I'm also man enough to admit when I'm wrong and I was wrong you and Rayna aren't toxic to each other." Coleman clapped him on the back.

"I'm not so sure that you weren't right 'bout that at the time. We were toxic to each other 'cause of all the secrets and the lies between us. We both held on to the hurt and the mad longer than we should have. But, we're workin' through that now. Every now and then some of the old hurts still flare up, but we do what we should have done to begin with we talk 'bout it and handle it like adults." Deacon replied.

"You keep this up and I'm gonna have to ask you to be my sponsor." Coleman joked.

"I'd have to check with my personal assistant to see what me schedule looks like for that." Deacon chuckled.

"Words I never thought I'd hear come out of your mouth." Coleman had to laugh too.

"You gotta come say hi." Deacon threw his arm over his shoulders and led him over to the table. "Hey, ya'll, look who I found."

"Cole, why didn't you call and say that you were in town? I would have set something up. I would love to see Audrey and the girls and I want ya'll to meet the boys." Rayna hugged him.

"I just now got a free minute and I know they would love to see you too. We will find a way to get together. I'm back for good now." Coleman hugged her back.

"Cole, that's great to hear." Tandy hugged him once her sister moved out of the way.

"It's even better to say. I wanted you to hear from me first that I'm going to be running for mayor. I have the full support of the city council and we will see how that goes." Coleman announced.

"That explains the unusually good mood that daddy has been in lately. He's up to his old tricks I see." Tandy just shook her head. There was really nothing more she could say to that.

"At least he's semi behaving himself. I don't think we get to ask for more than that." Rayna rolled her eyes.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Rhett pulled four beers out of the cooler using one hand and he popped the caps off with a bottle opener. He sat them on the back counter by the register and wiped his hands on his pants. He was getting ready to head over to where Will, Mack, Scarlett, and Gunnar were. He turned around and came face to face with Sadie. "Can I get somethin' for ya?" He gave her a dazzling smile.

"I didn't come over here for that. I thought that a proper introduction was in order. Your brother is a little scatter brained at times. I'm Sadie Stone, I'm a friend of Deacon's." Sadie smiled back at him.

"Rhett Claybourne, pleased to meet you." He shook her hand. He grabbed the beers using one hand again.

"That's talent right there." She commented.

"I'm talented like that. I can hold three baseballs in one hand." He laughed.

"Now you're just tryin' to show off." She teased him.

"No, it's true. It's one of the useless skills I picked up being a baseball player for most of my life." He blushed a little bit.

"Sadie, are you over here harassin' my baby brother without me?" Deacon walked up.

"No, I was just introducin' myself to your baby brother. Since you neglected to do it. I swear unless Rusty puts it on your calendar for you, you don't know what you have goin' on." She told him playfully.

"I try my best to remember what I've got goin' on, but it doesn't always work out that way." Deacon shrugged. "Rhett, you watch out for this one she will get you in trouble if you're not careful." He winked at Sadie.

"You're more damn trouble than you're worth sometimes, Deacon. I don't know why I enjoy your company so much." Sadie pushed his shoulder playfully.

"Hey, watch it, girl. That's the wing that I clipped." Deacon pretended to be hurt.

"That's the wing you clipped almost a year ago. I think you're healed by now." She shook her head.

"Those shoulder problems are nothin' to laugh at. I pulled a damn ligament playin' college ball and there went my chances at the MLB draft." Rhett informed her. That wasn't the whole story though. His shoulder had healed just fine, but his mother had gotten sick and he needed to be around to look after her.

"Rhett, don't encourage her. You just go on and get over there with your little friends." Deacon pointed his finger in the general direction of the tables.

"You don't have to tell me twice. I'm goin'. I'm not sure I wanna be in the middle of whatever this is." Rhett took his leave.

* * *

Rayna sat in her office with her fingertips pressed together. She'd made the mistake of googling Highway 65 and despite the overwhelming success of both her and Deacon's albums it was still being called a vanity label. Plus, they weren't polling well in the demos with tween and teenaged girls. That was thanks in part to a new artist that Luke had signed to his label. She'd pulled off a pretty big coup by getting Marcus Keen to sign on the label, but she was far from seeing the rewards of that.

She looked up in annoyance when she sensed someone standing in her doorway. Her annoyance grew ten fold when she saw that it was Jeff. "What do you want, Jeff?"

"I just came to offer my services. I know that we've had our differences in the past, but my only client is signed to this label and it would be in her best interests if it didn't go under." Jeff took a seat in the chair across from her desk without prompting.

"What in the hell are you talkin' 'bout?" She didn't know what was talking about half the time.

"You just used up a sizable amount of your cushion you've built up in signing Marcus Keen. Not only do you have a lot riding on him, but you don't really know how to handle him. It's a good thing that you have a guy like me around who is used to dealing with rock star personalities. Not only is this a fledgling label, you're more an artist than a label head. You're just as big a diva as he is. There is no way that is going to turn out well." He smirked.

"I would ask where you get your information, but I'm not sure that I want to know. The best way to ask me for a job is not by insulting me though. I don't know why I would even consider it." She arched her eyebrow at him.

"Rayna, you're a lot of things, but stupid isn't one of them. You need me to help you handle Marcus and possibly pull your demos up." He replied.

"JC's album launches in a few days I'm sure that we will get a boost from that." She dismissed his comment. Truthfully though she didn't know if that was going to be enough.

"You don't believe that anymore than I do. Girls do love hot teenage boys I won't deny that, but what they also want is to see someone like them who knows what they are going through. Luke is giving them that with Casey Miller she's seventeen, she reaches them on their level, and she has a story to tell. Too bad Highway Sixty-five doesn't have an answer to that." He looked at her intently.

"What are you gettin' at, Jeff?" She knew damn well what he meant, but she wanted to hear him say it.

"Maddie she's a year younger and has ten times the talent. I guess I can understand you not wanting to sign her under me, but you're in control here you could make the rules. You heard her out on tour all summer she's ready. Whether you want to admit it or not she is ready. You were the same age when you started out, but you didn't have the support system that she has." He told her reasonably.

"Step back, Jeff, I'll make that determination for myself. So far all you've done is run your mouth I've heard no real plan from you." She retorted.

"An artist like this takes up a lot time and a lot of attention. I know that you like to be a hands on label head, but even you don't have time to be that hands on. You have four kids, a husband, and a career of your own to focus on. All I'm suggesting is that you let me take a little of the burden off of you. You could consider me an artist liaison if you will. I could deal with the diva fits and personality quirks and free you up to deal with everything else you have on your plate." Jeff made his proposal.

"As good of an idea as that is. I don't trust you any farther than I can throw you, Jeff. I know that you would screw me over the first chance that you got." Rayna scoffed.

"If it makes you feel any better I don't trust you all that much either. You got me fired from my last job and you managed to burn an entire label to the ground. With the mutual distrust we know right where we stand with each other. There's no need to play games or worry that one of us is going to stab the other in the back. We both have our guard up. It's a perfect solution to the problem." He reasoned with her.

"What about Layla? You're her manager. You need to manage things." She hated to admit it, but his offer was very appealing.

"Please, I can handle that in my sleep. She's writing and working on her album. I dig up a few gigs for her to play here and there and she will be fine." He made a gesture with his hands as if to say that was no big deal.

She stared at him hard for a moment. "You're a fox, Jeff, there is no way that I'm letting you into my henhouse with unrestricted access. You come on, on a consulting basis for Marcus and that's it. You make no decisions or anything without consulting me first. You answer to me here I want to be clear about that right now. You are to handle him nothing more. I want you to keep him happy. If it even looks like you're gonna try to screw me over trust me I will make you a nothing in this business. You're already damn near untouchable I will make you so radioactive that you never work in an executive capacity again even at a Mom and Pop grocery store." She extended her hand to him.

He took her hand and shook it. "I can agree to those terms. I get nothing out of screwing you over. Only an idiot bites the hand that feeds him."

Rayna pulled her hand back quickly. She felt like she had just made a deal with the devil. She did need his help though. He'd been in this position before and she could admit that he knew what he was doing. She picked up her phone. "Hey, can you come to my office for a minute?"

A moment later Tandy walked in. "What do you need, babe?"

"We need to get a contract drawn up for Jeff. He's our new consultant. Read he's Marcus Keen's babysitter. I thought that you could come up with an appropriate salary for someone of his skill set." Rayna explained.

"I can handle that. You sure about this?" Tandy asked.

"As much as I hate to admit it. Jeff makes a valid point. With all the attention that an artist like Marcus demands I would be spreading myself very thin and that is how things slip through the cracks. I thought that he could babysit him while I work on my new album." Rayna replied.

"I prefer the term artist liaison." Jeff interjected.

"Call yourself whatever you want to, Jeff. Just know that I have a very close eye on you and the first time that you step out of line I will make you sorry. I worked for my father for many, many years. I picked up a thing or two from him. I'm the last person that you want to cross." Tandy warned him.

"I would expect nothing less from Lamar Wyatt's protégé." He smirked at her. They had just played right into his hands. He was working an angle as usual. He'd heard the rumors around town about Lamar's stadium deal and the baseball team that he planned to raise. Sure he'd done a lot of work in the music industry, but he'd make a pretty good front office guy for a sport's team. If he got in good with Rayna, then maybe he could get Lamar to consider for a position when the time came if for no other reason than she wanted him out of her hair.

"Flattery will get you nowhere with me. You can ask my boyfriend if you don't believe me. He tries it all the time and it never works for him." Tandy rolled her eyes at him.

"Can you take him back to your office and work out the details of this consultant thing with him? I need to go take a shower because I got splattered with all the bullshit that he was just spewing." Rayna asked.

"Yeah, I'll handle him for you." Tandy jerked her thumb in the direction of her office. "Come on, Jeff, let's go hash out your contract."

"Contract negotiations are only one of my favorite things ever let's do this." Jeff got to his feet with another smirk and followed her out of the room.

Rayna breathed a huge sigh when he walked out. She'd just gotten into bed with the devil, but damned if the devil didn't make a good point on a few fronts. He'd even made a pretty valid point about Maddie. As much as she didn't want to see it she knew her daughter was ready. She could tell that she was busting at the seams to do things on her terms. Maybe if she gave her a little leeway then she wouldn't have to deal with the rebellion she'd put her father through. It was something worth considering anyway.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I had to throw Jeff in there to create a little conflict because that's really all he's good for. I have some big stuff coming your way. Hang with me through these twists and turns it's about to get a whole lot more interesting. Until next time please review.


	61. Chapter 61

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 61

"Thanks for comin' in. Have a seat." Rayna smiled from behind her desk.

"Pawpaw and mawmaw are both at the house right now and that means JC and I not only have no privacy to write, but we can't concentrate. It's like they play a game of who can make the boys squeal louder." Maddie sat down across from her mother.

"Leave your grandparents alone. Your mawmaw has had a hard life and your pawpaw is on his best behavior I'm not gonna complain about that." Rayna scolded her jokingly.

"What did you want to see me for, mom?" Maddie sat on the edge of her chair and put her elbow's on her mom's desk.

"Well, I wanted to talk to you 'bout something, but first. Where's your boyfriend? Will is in the writer's room with Gunnar today and I know how Jimmy and Will are together." Rayna asked.

"Well, he came with me and the last I saw of him he was headed to dad's office, but dad is in the studio today with Avery. Which is why the crazy grandparents are at the house with the boys today." Maddie replied.

"Hold that thought." Rayna picked up her desk phone and punched a number. "Gunnar, the other member of the Texas Trio is in the building. I can't believe I'm about to say this, but you're in charge don't let them get out of hand." She hung up the phone.

"What's this about?" Maddie asked again. As far as she could remember she hadn't done anything to get in trouble. At least not anything that her mother knew about.

"I was sixteen once, Maddie. When I was sixteen I felt like no one in the world understood me and that rules were only meant to hold me back. I was gonna do what I wanted to no matter what your pawpaw said. I wanted to make music as much as he didn't want me to. I shouldn't be giving you any ideas, but I was sneaking your dad up to my room and playing shows with him behind my daddy's back. Which by the way I would kill you for if you even got the thought in your head. And that's before your father gets ahold of you." Rayna began a little unsure of how to approach this conversation. She'd lost her mother when she'd just become a teenager she felt a little unsure of how to relate to Maddie sometimes.

"Um, ok? Is there a point to this, mom?" Maddie was even more confused than she had been when she first walked in.

"I guess what I'm asking is do you ever feel that way. Like I'm trying to hold you back? That's not my intention at all. I'm trying to look out for you like I had no one to do for me. This business is full of sharks. I've been trying to keep you from growing up too fast, but how do you feel? I want you to be able to tell me the things that I couldn't tell my daddy." Rayna sighed flustered. Deacon was so much better at this handling a teenaged girl thing than she was. It seemed that he always knew the perfect thing to say to her maybe it was because she was so much like him.

"It's not that I feel like you're trying to hold me back. I mean you gave me a record deal. And you really are protecting me and letting me still be a kid. The thing of it is you gave me a record deal with my twelve-year-old sister. I love singing with Daphne and I always will, but I feel like I'm ready for things that she isn't ready for. I don't want to ditch her because she's lost so much already. I think everything has been harder on her than it has been on me. At the same time though I want to branch out and sing different songs and try different things." Maddie voiced what she had been holding back for so long.

"I hear what you're saying and like I said I understand how you feel. I felt the exact same way. I wanted to get out I wanted to get my music heard. It doesn't help your case any that you've got half of your daddy's genes in you. You got my ambition and his passionate nature." Rayna replied. She was just glad that she seemed to be making progress with her daughter.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but I feel like dad gets me more than you do. He seems to understand that making music keeps me sane it keeps me from feeling like I'm going to jump out of my skin. Honestly, mom, we both know if he hadn't suggested it you wouldn't have given Daphne and me this record deal. I understand that you had to deal with some bad people when you were first starting out, but I have something that you didn't have I have you. I'm ready, mom, I know that this is scary for you. It's scary for me too. I'm growing up and it's terrifying for me the only thing that makes it any better is knowing that I have you and dad there to catch me if I fall." Maddie spoke passionately.

"I guess that we just have to take this leap and be scared together then, baby girl. I'm in if you are. No way I let you do this without me there by your side cheering you on and looking out for you. There were so many times that I looked over and wished my momma was there to tell me what I should do. I didn't have that and I want you to." Rayna reached out and took both of Maddie's hands. Her eyes swam with tears of both joy and sadness.

"Do you really mean it, mom?" Maddie's eyes filled with tears seeing her mother in such an emotional state.

"I wouldn't have brought this up to you if I wasn't serious about it. I don't want you to feel like you have no other choice than to turn away from me and I want to help you reach your dreams. I can promise you a couple of things though we aren't always gonna like each other and we aren't always gonna agree on how things should be done. I'm gonna make decisions that you don't like and I need you to trust me and believe that I know what I'm talking about. I'm also gonna push you harder than you've ever been pushed in your life and you're gonna be a better musician for it. If you can handle that and doing it on my terms at least until you graduate then I think we can work something out." Rayna let go of one of her hands and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I can agree to that. I don't think you're asking too much. It wouldn't be compromise if we both didn't have to give a little something." Maddie wiped her face now.

"In that case," Rayna opened her desk drawer and took a contract out. "I have a standard contract that I would give to any baby artist it's also a better deal than you're gonna find anywhere else. If you don't believe me have Glenn or Uncle Bucky look at it for you. They have both been managers for a long time and they know a good deal when they see one."

"Mom, you're the last person in this world that I think would try to cheat me." Maddie replied.

"Still it's good to get in the habit of having someone to look things over for you. You're in a unique position because we have a team of lawyers here and you're free to use them. They've already vetted this contract and know that it's sound. Or even better ask Aunt Tandy she's great with contracts. There's a catch to this though. I'm not the parent that's gonna sign this contract for you. As much as I love the moment we just had we still have to run this by your daddy." Rayna advised her.

"I can do that. Oh, God, I've gotta ask dad? Mom, he's never gonna go for this. Or at least it's gonna take a long time to convince him that this is a good idea." Maddie groaned.

"Sweetie, you don't know your daddy the way that I do. You two have come such a long way since you found out about each other and I love the bond that you've built, but you still don't know him that well. He'll go for this. This was kinda his idea to begin with. We just need to go talk to him." Rayna smiled at her.

"Ok, let's go talk to him then." Maddie smiled back.

* * *

"There are two of my favorite girls." Deacon greeted Rayna and Maddie cheerfully. He pecked his wife's lips and hugged his daughter.

"Hey, babe, how's it goin'?" Rayna inquired.

"We're havin' a bit of a day. We've run through the same song fifteen times and we still can't get the sound we're lookin' for. It's hard to tell if a couple lyrics need to be changed around or if we need to change up the instrumentals." Deacon pinched the bridge of his nose.

"You'll get it nailed down you always do. You're one of the best in this business for a reason." Rayna rubbed his bicep.

"Gettin' a visit from you two has improved my mood. What are ya'll doin' here?" He let himself relax a little bit.

"Go on, Maddie, ask your daddy what you want to ask him." Rayna encouraged her daughter.

"Will you sign this for me?" Maddie handed him the contract that Rayna had given her.

Deacon got a curious look on his face as he read the contract over. "Hey, Maddie, why don't you go in the booth and see if you can help Avery out with this song? I need to speak to your momma for a minute." He flashed her a quick smile.

"Sure, dad, whatever you need." Maddie agreed. She went into the sound booth with Avery.

"You come with me." He grabbed Rayna by the hand and took her back to one of the writer's rooms and shut the door behind them.

"Deacon, what's wrong?" She could tell from his posture that he was upset.

"What's wrong is once again you went and made the decision for both of us. This is somethin' that you should have talked to me 'bout first." He crossed his arms over his chest.

"We did talk about this and we agreed that she needs to explore who she is as an artist and give her some room to grow. Babe, you can see how much she wants this as clearly as I can. You saw the look on her face the other night when we gave Jimmy a full contract. This way we get to set the rules. That was your reasoning when we signed both the girls." She reminded him.

"This ain't 'bout how badly I know she wants this. This is 'bout the fact that you presented a contract to our sixteen-year-old before you talked to me 'bout it. If I don't sign it I'm gonna look like the bad guy you've put me in a hell of a position here, Ray. You made all the decisions for thirteen years without me gettin' a say in the matter. I'm here now and I want to exercise my rights as her father." He clarified.

"Baby, I'm not trying to cut you out of the decision making process. I told her that I wouldn't sign the contract for her that she had to be the one to bring it to you and ask your permission. I don't want her to turn into me though, you know how defiant I was at that age. You know the things that I did. Hell, you were the one who helped me do them. This gives her some freedom, but still gives us room to guide her and parent her." She explained to him calmly.

His expression softened. "I'm sorry, baby. I have a kneejerk reaction when it comes to her. I'm workin' on it. And you're right I do think that she needs this. If we don't give her this chance she is gonna rebel and just be hell to deal with."

"She got my stubborn streak and your iron will. That right there is why we clash a lot and she's got both those traits battling it out inside of her. As much as she's just like you she's like me too, but she has more of your traits both the good and the bad that's for sure. That's why you seem to understand her so much better than I do. I told you that I feel like I'm out of my depth with her sometimes and that we're not as close as we used to be. I'll admit that that's partially my fault I did lie to her. Today though we had a moment and we connected. It felt like we finally healed and we bridged that gap that's been between us since she found out you're her father. I apologize for not running this by your first, but that moment it meant everything to me it felt like I got my little girl back." She threw her arms around his neck.

"It's ok, baby, I'll never not forgive you. I need to stop bein' so damn defensive when it comes to her. I know that you trust me with her and to be her daddy. You trust me enough that you let me adopt Daphne and love her like my own. If this is what it takes for you two to get closer again and for us to get a handle on her it's a price I'm more than willin' to pay. I have just a few little stipulations though." He put his arms around her waist.

"Name them," She stared into his eyes.

"She finishes the album she started with Daphne. I don't want the Squirt to feel like she's gettin' left behind. She's been through a lot of changes too and she rolls with the punches, but Maddie has been her one constant through all of that. I want her to know that she's still just as important she's just young and she can take the next couple of years to develop her talent even more. Also Maddie finishes school. I don't mean she gets a GED I want her to have the high school experience. She's almost done she might as well get her diploma. She plays small gigs 'round town to start. She can have a semi regular slot at the Mile Marker. She can record all the albums she wants and even do music videos. Hell, I wouldn't be opposed to her openin' here and there as long as it doesn't get in the way of school. I'm even willin' to hire a tutor, but I don't really want her tourin' full time just yet. Once she finishes school we give her the full court press." Deacon laid out his stipulations.

"I agree a hundred and ten percent with everything you just said. I think it's reasonable and it's a good deal for her. The minute she graduates we take those restrictions off of her contract." Rayna nodded her head in agreement.

Deacon look over the contract again and took a pen out of his shirt pocket. He signed it and folded it up. "What do you say we go make a little girl very happy?"

"I say I agree with that too." Rayna took his hand and they headed back into the mixing booth.

Deacon pressed the intercom button. "Maddie, come on in here for a minute."

"What do you need, dad?" Maddie asked him.

"I have a question for you. Is this what you really want?" Deacon asked in reply.

"I want this more than anythin', dad." Maddie assured him.

"Then, you've got it." Deacon held up the signed contract.

Maddie wrapped her arms around him tightly. "Oh my God, thank you, thank you. I love you so much, daddy."

"I love you too, baby girl." Deacon squeezed her just a little tighter and kissed her head. Before he pulled away. "I regularly pay for two sound booths when I'm in here. There happens to be one across the hall free. Let's go over there and lay down your single. And call Jimmy I want ya'll to record Travelin' Soldier today. You're gonna get Mama's Broken Heart down. Those two songs already have all the bugs worked out. If this goes as well as I think it will we could have a two song EP up by tomorrow."

"Dad, you are the best." Maddie pulled out her phone and texted JC.

"What about Avery?" Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"He's your problem for a little while. I've done everythin' that I know how to do. Maybe it needs your touch." Deacon replied. Sometimes it was better to have a fresh set of ears come in and take a listen.

"I'll see what I can do, but I make no promises." Rayna replied.

"If you can get somethin' outta him great, if you can't then maybe I'll just beat him with a stick." Deacon stole a kiss from her.

"Don't give me any ideas. If he's being difficult I just might." Rayna smiled against his lips.

"He's not bein' difficult he's just havin' a hell of a time with this song. It doesn't sound right." Deacon shook his head.

"Did you try slowin' it down some?" Maddie asked.

"Show me what you mean." Deacon went with her over to the mixing board.

Maddie slid down one of the dials that would slow the tempo down and she played back the song. "Something like that maybe." She suggested.

"I'll be damned. That sounds good. I better watch out for you or you'll be havin' my job next." Deacon laughed.

"She's ours, what else did you expect?" Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

* * *

"Hey, Jimmy Boy, you ready for this?" Deacon stood next to JC. They were at his album launch party. It was being held at the Mile Marker. It served two purposes it was a good platform for JC to launch from and it gave the bar exposure to industry bigwigs.

"As ready as I'm ever gonna be anyway. It's really packed in here tonight." JC replied. They were behind the curtain on the stage.

"You're gonna do great, babe. Break a leg." Maddie kissed his cheek. It was safe for her to do that back there because no one could see them. "Remember, we barely look at each other tonight."

"I know, Cricket. I can play it cool. Don't you worry. We ain't gonna end up on TMZ or anythin' like that." JC grinned at her.

"Just keep your hands to yourself around me." Maddie kissed his cheek one more time and went to sit down.

"You got it, Cricket." JC laughed.

"Alright, here we go." Deacon walked out on stage and picked up the mic. "How ya'll doin' tonight?" He waited for the cheers to die down. "Ya'll didn't come here to listen to me talk. Some of you heard the advanced copies of the album and you know how great it is. I'm gonna let the man speak for himself. Welcome to the stage, Mr. JC Grayson."

JC walked out on the stage carrying his guitar and he waved to the crowd. "Hey, ya'll thanks for comin' out tonight. Now who's ready to get this party started?" He got the cheers he expected. "Ok, I'm gotta start out tonight with a twist I put on a classic. I've got Freakin' Deacon Claybourne himself here to help me sing it."

"We gonna play this or we gonna talk 'em to death?" Deacon put his guitar strap over his shoulder.

"Let's play this." JC started strumming on his guitar. _"A showman's life is a smoky bar and the fevered chase of a tiny star. It's a hotel room and and a lonely wife. From what I've seen of a showman's life. Nobody told me about this part."_

" _They told me all about the pretty girls and the wine and the money and the good times. There's no mention of all the wear and tear on an old honkytonker's heart. Well, I might have known it, but nobody told me about this part."_

" _A boy will dream as children do of a great white way until the dream comes true. And a phony smile in a colored light is all there is to a showman's life. Nobody told me about this part."_ Deacon sang this verse while strumming his guitar.

" _They told me all about the pretty girls and the wine."_ JC sang.

" _And the money and the good times."_ Deacon picked up.

" _There's no mention of all the wear and tear on an old honkytonker's heart. Well, I might have known it, but nobody told me about this part."_ They sang that part in unison.

JC played a very good guitar solo.

" _Nobody told me about this part. They told me all about the pretty girls and the wine and the money and the good times. There's no mention of all the wear and tear on an old honkytonker's heart. Well, I might have known it, but nobody told me about this part."_ They sang the whole chorus together.

" _Well, I might have known it, but nobody told me about this part."_ Deacon finished out the song.

"Freakin' Deacon Claybourne, ladies and gentlemen." JC clapped his hands as Deacon walked off the stage. "I honestly don't know where'd I'd be without that man right now. I'd certainly still be sharin' a rundown two-bedroom apartment with a bunch of other guys. I wouldn't have met my best friend and I probably wouldn't be standin' on this stage right now." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, I got another new one for you then I'm gonna take a break to mingle."

He started playing another tune on his guitar. _"I'm been thinkin' 'bout you all day, baby. Waitin' on that sun to go down. Whatcha say I pick you up after work? Slide over we slip out to the outskirts of town. I got a blanket and a fifth of comfort. A little somethin' to knock off the edge. It's supposed to get a little cool tonight looks like I'm gonna have to hold you tight, yeah."_

This song had been inspired by a date that he and Maddie had. They found out of the way places to go on dates so that no one would harass them.

" _About a mile off old mill road that spot nobody knows we park the truck and we take off runnin' hurry up, girl I hear it comin'. Got a moon and a million stars. Sound of steel and old boxcars. The thought of is drivin' me insane. Come on, baby, let's go listen to the night train."_

His eyes found Maddie in the crowd and he smiled at her. _"Yeah, I hope it's gonna be a long one and if we're lucky it's movin' slow. Wouldn't mind if it lasted all night lyin' next to you on that hillside let's go."_

" _About a mile off old mill road that spot nobody knows we park the truck and we take off runnin' hurry up, girl I hear it comin'. Got a moon and a million stars. Sound of steel and old boxcars. The thought of is drivin' me insane. Come on, baby, let's go listen to the night train. Let's go listen to the night train."_

Maddie smiled back at him discreetly.

" _About a mile off old mill road that spot nobody knows we park the truck and we take off runnin' hurry up, girl I hear it comin'. Got a moon and a million stars. Sound of steel and old boxcars. The thought of is drivin' me insane. Come on, baby, let's go listen to the night train. Let's go listen to the night train."_

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Hey, Rayna," Luke walked up to her. A tall brunette young woman was by his side.

"Hey, Luke, what's up?" Rayna flashed him one of her stage smiles. She was guiding JC through doing PR.

"I was hopin' to talk some business with you." Luke replied.

"Ok, shoot," Rayna replied.

"I think this idea is gonna make us both a lot of money. If it were an artist from any other label I'd just do it without checkin' first, but because of our history together I'm askin'. We have two of the hottest artists on the market right now. What harm would it do if we got JC and Casey here together to do a duet? It never hurts to put a lot of music out on the market." Luke suggested.

"I say that I give my artists a lot of creative control and that's up to him if he wants to do a duet with her." Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"What do you say, kid?" Luke asked him.

"Sure that sounds great." JC smirked. Obviously Colt didn't tell his father anything if he was asking him to do a duet with his artist.

"Alright let's get ya'll kids introduced then. JC, this is Casey, Casey this is JC." Luke made the introductions.

"Pleased to meet you." JC offered the younger girl his hand.

"It's nice to meet you too." Casey shot him a flirty smile and shook his hand.

"I think we best leave the two of them to talk they don't need their bosses tryin' to tell 'em what to do or anythin' like that." Luke tried to make a joke.

"Yeah, they don't need us hanging around, come on I'll buy you a beer." Rayna made nice with him.

"Yeah, you're gonna buy me a beer your husband owns the bar." Luke laughed.

"It's the thought that counts." Rayna laughed along with him.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Oh, Maddie looks pissed off." Will started in on Maddie.

"Well, yeah, her boyfriend is talking to another girl of course she's pissed." Mack jumped in.

"Ya'll knock it off for once. You ain't helpin' matters any. I swear you're a bunch of teenagers stuck in the bodies of grown men." Scarlett rolled her eyes at them.

"And just think in a few weeks you're marrying one of us." Mack pointed at Gunnar.

"I hate to say this, but he's the adult out of all of ya'll." Scarlett shook her head.

"Maddie, I'd offer you a beer to calm you down, but we are in public. This isn't like that one night on the tour bus that we all got really trashed and by some miracle your parents didn't find out about it. I'm still choosin' to believe that they just ignored the fact that we were hung over as fuck in Knoxville. There's no way that they didn't know." Will added.

"Let's not never talking about it again, Will. You and JC drew a mustache on me that night. I played hell trying to get that off." Gunnar said indignantly.

"I'm just sayin'." Will shrugged his shoulders.

"Maddie, you know that you have nothin' to worry 'bout. That boy is crazy 'bout you. He's not Colt. That's all you have to remember." Scarlett advised her.

"I know that, I'm just afraid he's gonna realize that he can find someone more experienced than me who can give him what he wants." Maddie admitted.

"Trust me on this one, that's not gonna happen he's one of those rare boys that actually likes you for you. And as for that girl he's talkin' to if you watch him closely enough every few seconds he looks over here at you." Scarlett tried to cheer her up.

"Really?" Maddie perked up. She smiled the next time that JC's eyes came her way.

"Yeah, really. Stop listenin' to the boys they are all trouble. I don't know why we hang out with them." Scarlett threw her arm around her shoulders.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	62. Chapter 62

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 62

"Who's idea was it to do an afternoon showcase? I'm a damn musician I sleep all day." Deacon yawned and covered his mouth with his hand. He took his guitar out of the case.

"You have your good buddy Wheels Up to thank for that. This was his idea and I met him halfway since we both have a horse in this race. And you wouldn't be asleep right now anyway those boys wouldn't allow that. Is your insomnia acting up again?" Rayna rolled her eyes at him.

"No, our little men are startin' to cut teeth and they are miserable. But when isn't my insomnia actin' up? I had it before I started drinkin' heavily and it hasn't gotten any better over the years. Anyway, Maddie is not happy that she's stuck in school for this." He replied.

"Darlin', I'm sorry if you'd told they were having a rough night I would have gotten up with you to help. I hate them bein' in pain and I can't do anything about it. You never have been much of a sleeper I'll give you that. Oh, I know I had to promise her studio time after school today to get her to go. What she could possibly have to record I don't know. I know I give my artists creative control, but I'm gonna look over her shoulder just a little bit more than I normally would." She shook her head.

"Like we said I don't sleep well and there was no sense in you not sleepin' if I was up anyway. All the girl does is write songs with the boy wonder. I'm sure she has hundreds of them. And I'm sure she and I are gonna butt heads when I get her in the studio." He sighed. He loved his daughter fiercely, but she didn't like to listen to him.

"That's right you two have the same temper. I may have to have Avery produce her or look into someone else because I'm terrified you two are gonna kill each other. She's gonna be another Juliette to deal with." She laughed softly.

"You're the one who gave her a contract. And we ain't gonna kill each other we are just gonna have rather loud discussions. I would really like to be the one to produce her first album. That means somethin' to me." He laughed too.

"You're the one who signed therefore this is your fault and I'm innocent like always. And I would really like for you to produce her." She winked at him.

He arched his eyebrow and just laughed louder. "Ok, tell me the game plan for this little concert."

"You're the bandleader today. I agreed that I would do Ball and Chain with Luke. You and I are gonna do You and Tequila. That's setting up for Jimmy and Casey to introduce their new duet. Which, by the way our amazingly talented daughter co-wrote." She gave him a quick rundown.

"I hate that song just so you know. And I know that you know I hate it. I did hear a rumor that our little girl co-wrote this duet. Also I was thinkin' that we would go with Whiskey Lullaby." He replied.

"No, we need to promote You and Tequila. And I'm well aware of how you feel about that song I feel that way too." She corrected him.

"Is this comin' from my wife or my label head?" He asked her.

"This is coming from your partner, because my manager and head of A and R said that we need to promote You and Tequila." She replied.

"Alright, in that case we better do as we were told." He agreed.

"I'm gonna call your momma and check up on the boys before this starts. You know how to play Ball and Chain, right?" She knew she didn't have to ask him that. He was arguably the best guitar player in the business.

"Yeah, babe, I got it down." He assured her.

She pecked his lips quickly. "I'll be right back."

"I'll be here." He replied.

"Freakin' Deacon, I'm kinda surprised that you beat me here. I know how slow your bride can be when it comes to gettin' ready." Luke greeted him.

"It's a school day or wouldn't be this early. I had myself, the boys, and the two girls ready in the time it took her to get ready. I don't know what she does with all that stuff she keeps in the bathroom and I've lived with her on and off since she was sixteen." Deacon replied.

"I don't think as men we are meant to understand women. That's the conclusion I've come to." Luke shrugged his shoulders.

"We're better off not tryin' to anyway." Deacon could agree with that.

Rayna walked over to the two men a moment later. "Deacon, your momma would like me to inform you that your sons are as bad as you ever dared to be. She said that Deac takes off crawling in one direction and Jayme goes the other."

"My sons? I don't think I made them all on my own." Deacon grinned at her.

"Yeah, your sons. They are only my sons when they are being angels. I mean they do look just like you." Rayna winked at him.

"I see how we're gonna play it." Deacon laughed.

"Go finish getting set up." Rayna laughed.

"Thank ya'll for lettin' us play for you today. Now, I hope you don't mind that we brought some friends along with us." Rayna spoke to the crowd.

"Here to perform their new duet JC Grayson and Casey Miller." Luke amped the crowd up and clapped his hands.

JC and Casey both took the stage. He had his guitar strap around his neck. "Casey, what do you say we play this song?"

"I say start us off, JC." Casey bantered back with him.

JC strummed his guitar. _"I walk in on Friday nights same ol' bar same burned out lights. Same people and all the same faces. So why in the hell does it feel like a different place?"_

" _Meet my friends for a girls' night out. Seems there ain't much to talk about. Same drinks that we're all raising, but all of the toasts just don't feel the same."_ Casey sang.

" _We used to be the life of the party. We used to be the ones that they wished they were. Now it's like they don't know how to act. Maybe they're like me and they want us back. It's like there's always an empty space. Those memories that nobody can erase of how bright we burned. Well, now it hurts, but it's true. When they think of me they think of you."_ They sang the chorus together.

" _They keep askin' how I am. But they're really askin' where you've been."_ JC took that line.

" _I can read between all of the lines. It ain't just us missin' all of the times."_ Their voices blended together.

" _We used to be the life of the party. We used to be the ones that they wished they were. Now it's like they don't know how to act. Maybe they're like me and they want us back. It's like there's always an empty space. Those memories that nobody can erase of how bright we burned. Well, now it hurts, but it's true. When they think of me they think of you."_

" _Ain't it funny how a flame like that."_ He sang.

" _Oh, they think of you."_ She wailed.

" _It can burn when it's in the past."_ He closed his eyes and put all his energy into that line.

" _We used to be the life of the party. We used to be the ones that they wished they were. Now it's like they don't know how to act. Maybe they're like me and they want us back. It's like there's always an empty space. Those memories that nobody can erase of how bright we burned. Well, now it hurts, but it's true. When they think of me they think of you."_

" _Oh, they think of you."_ She sang.

" _When they think of me."_ He sang.

" _Baby, baby, oh, oh,"_ She took the next line.

" _Oh, when they think of me they think of you."_ They finished together.

The crowd went wild for those two together.

JC laughed when he heard the familiar rebel yell followed by a cry of 'Texas Forever'. There was little doubt in his mind that that had come from Will. "Thank ya'll so much."

"Truly this is a dream come true and sometimes I'm not so sure it's happening." Casey added.

They both exited the stage.

"I told ya it'd be good if we put those two together." Luke commented to Rayna.

"He's just got one of those voices that goes well with a lot of people's. And she is really talented." Rayna replied.

"The way she looks at him I'd say that you and I could get a lot more press from the two of 'em. Though, rumor around town has it that the apple didn't fall far from the tree when it comes to slightly older guitar players." Luke added.

"Let me put it this way. Don't go settin' up any inter label marriages. I'll just leave it at that." Deacon chimed in.

"I can take the hint." Luke retorted.

"How'd you know?" Rayna asked him. As far as she knew Maddie and JC had been very careful.

"You know how it goes when you have a teenager sometimes you hear things that they would rather you didn't." Luke responded.

"I know that very well." Rayna agreed.

"Jimmy, you two struck gold again." Deacon said when JC walked over.

"That was a song that came out of nowhere. It was really just meant to entertain Outlaw and Rebel." JC had picked up Deacon's nicknames for the boys.

"You two can babysit more often if it's gonna lead to songs like that." Rayna said.

"Thanks, it was nothin'." JC blushed. He pulled his phone out his pocket when it rang. "Hey, what's up?" He listened to what his caller had to say. "I can't talk freely right now I'll call you later." He said cryptically.

Rayna took the phone out of his hand. She knew exactly who he was talking to. "Maddie, you will see him later. Go talk to your friends." She said into the phone and she laughed. "I love you, see you after school." She hung up the phone and handed it back to JC.

"I tell her all the time not to call me. I might as well be talkin' to a wall. At least the wall would hear me." JC defended himself.

"You're not tellin' us a thing we don't know." Deacon assured him.

"I should go say hi to Will. I'll be right back." JC just shook his head.

"Mind if I tag along?" Casey asked him.

"Not at all. Will never passes up a chance to torment me in front of company." JC replied.

* * *

"JC, are you even listening to me right now?" Maddie paced around the in home music room wildly.

"I heard every word you just said, Cricket." JC put his hands over his face and groaned loudly. It would have been impossible for him not to hear her. She'd been in worked up state since she'd seen an article on the internet speculating that he and Casey were an item.

"This is not ok at all. You're my boyfriend. I can't have other girls thinking that you're available." She ranted.

"I don't matter what they think. It matters what we know. I'm yours and you're mine. That's all that matters. Let the press speculate all they want to. We know the truth." He tried to calm her down.

"Yeah, we know the truth, but no one else does." She fumed.

"Come on now, Cricket, this can't bother you that much. It's not a big deal you know that I don't have eyes for anyone, but you." He pointed out to her.

"I don't know why sometimes. I tease you and I lead you on, but I'm not ready for what I know you are." She replied.

"Maddie, that doesn't matter to me. What we have is better than sex. I'm willin' to wait for you to be ready. It's not somethin' that you can put a time table on. I have no expectations out of you. All I know is I've been with other girls and none of them have ever made me feel the way that you make me feel. There has been an undeniable connection between us since the day we met. I ain't gonna throw that away for a piece of ass." He did his best to reassure her.

"You really mean that?" She asked him.

"I really mean that." He smiled at her.

"I just don't want you to wake up one day and realize that you could do so much better than me." She told him.

He scoffed at that and picked up his guitar. He picked out a soft tune on it. _"There's a want and there's a need. There's a history between girls like her and guys like me. Cowboys and angels. I've got boots and she's got wings. I'm hell on wheels and she's heavenly. I'd die for her and she lives for me. Cowboys and angels. We ride side by side a cloud of dust a ray of light. My touch is her temptation her kiss is my salvation. She's sweet I'm wild we're dangerous. Cowboys and angels."_

Maddie just stared at him while he played.

" _Not sure why her path crossed accident or grand design. Oh, maybe God just kinda likes cowboys and angels. We ride side by side a cloud of dust a ray of light. My touch is her temptation her kiss is my salvation. She's sweet I'm wild we're dangerous cowboys and angels."_ JC kept singing.

She licked her dry lips and stared into his eyes. He was right and she knew it, but still she couldn't help worrying.

" _There's a want and there's a need. There's a history between girls like you and guys like me cowboys and angels. Cowboys and angels."_ He finished his song staring back into her eyes.

For the first time she cracked a smile. She took the guitar out of his hands and put it on the empty chair. She sat down on his lap and kissed him deeply.

"See there? You ain't got a thing to worry 'bout. You're the only girl that I want." He smiled against her lips.

"I see your point." She agreed with him.

"Good, now can we get back to this song for Scarlett and Gunnar's weddin'?" He laughed. They were supposed to come up with a duet to sing while Scarlett walked down the aisle.

"Yeah, we can do that." She grinned at him. "For what it's worth I'm probably not going to keep you waiting much longer. I feel safe with you."

"Good, I'm glad you do." He replied. He didn't want her to feel pressured or rushed into anything with him. He wanted her to set the pace.

"Let's turn on the radio. Uncle Watty is supposed to be playing our song tonight." She picked up the remote for the stereo.

"I'm excited for this let's listen." He agreed.

* * *

Deacon rolled over and checked the bedside clock when he heard Rayna come into the bedroom. He groaned a little when he saw the that the display said it was one AM. "You just gettin' home, babe?"

"Yeah, I'm sorry I didn't mean to wake you. Marcus was being a diva and wouldn't just get out of the studio. I don't know what I'm thinkin' trying to produce his album and record one of my own at the same time. I was hoping to be home in time to help you put the boys to bed." Rayna apologized to him. She stripped out of her clothes and got into her pajamas.

"It's alright, babe. I know that you were workin'. You're the boss, Ray. Tell him when to call it a night. The boys went down without a problem. They will probably be up soon to nurse or they may sleep through the night. I don't think they can quite decide what they like to do more yet." He assured her.

She crawled into bed, kissed him, and laid her head on his chest. "I love you and I don't know what I'd do without you here to keep the home fires burning."

"We're partners, baby, that's what I'm here for." He kissed the top of her head.

She rubbed his chest and started kissing his neck. "I missed you."

"I missed you too." He slid his hand up her shirt.

They both laughed when the boys started crying over the monitor and his phone started ringing.

"You pick up your phone and I'll go get the boys." She stole a kiss from him and headed to the nursery.

He picked up his phone and answered it without looking to see who it was. "This is Deacon."

"Deacon, it's Rhett. I wouldn't bother you this late unless it was important. I didn't know who else to call." Rhett's voice came over the other end of the line.

"Don't worry about it, little brother. What's goin' on?" Deacon asked.

"I just got call 'bout my momma. They said that she's askin' for me and if I wanna see her I better go now." Rhett told him.

"I'm comin' over to get you right now. I'm not lettin' you go through this alone. I'm gonna call Bucky on my way over and have him get a plane lined up for us. Don't argue with me just pack a bag and I'll be there soon." Deacon replied.

"Alright, I'll be waitin' for you." Rhett was too emotional to even put up an argument.

"See you soon." Deacon hung up the phone and started to get dressed.

Rayna walked back into the room with both the boys in her arms. "What's going on?"

"I've gotta go get Rhett and take him to Natchez. His momma's dyin' and she wants to see him, but they said he should go now. I can't let him do this alone." He explained to her quickly. He threw some clothes in a duffel bag and slipped his feet into his boots.

"Just go, babe. Don't worry about anything here. Go take care of your brother." She told him.

"Thank you for understandin', baby." He kissed her and both the boys.

"Don't be ridiculous like you said we are partners this is what we do. You call me as soon as you know anything, ok?" She told him.

"I will, babe. I love you." He blew her a kiss.

"I love you too." She blew a kiss back to him. The boys both started to fuss again. "I know, you two wanna eat. Let's get you fed." She got into bed with them.

* * *

"You want me to go in with you or do you want me to stay out here?" Deacon asked Rhett as they stood outside his mother's hospital room.

"I'll go in alone, but I'll let you know if I need anythin'." Rhett took a deep breath to prepare himself and then he walked into the room. His knees buckled when he saw how frail and feeble his mother looked. She was skin and bones. He forced himself to walk over to the side of her bed. He bent down and kissed her cheek. Her skin was cool to the touch. He was certain that he was too late.

Rose cracked her eyes open and a smile graced her once beautiful face. "Rhett, you made it." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Yeah, momma, I made it." His eyes teared up.

She reached up and touched his cheek gently. "No tears, my boy. Don't be sad that the song is over be happy that you got to hear the music at all."

"I love you so much." He took her hand off his cheek and kissed it and then he kissed her forehead.

"I love you too, my boy. You didn't come all this way alone did you?" She asked concerned.

"No, I didn't." He promised her.

"Your brother came didn't he? I knew that he would be there for you." She smiled again.

"He did," Rhett confirmed.

"Ask him to come in and you stay out in the hall for a minute." She instructed him.

"Whatever you want, momma." He agreed. He let go of her hand and walked to where Deacon stood outside the door. "Deacon, she'd like to talk to you for a minute."

"Ok," Deacon went into the room without question. He stepped beside the bed where Rose could see him easily. "You wanted to see me."

"I wanted to thank you. Even if you didn't know you were sendin' money to me you helped keep your brother fed and a roof over his head. I also wanted to ask you for a favor." She told him weakly.

"You can ask me for anythin'. And you don't have to thank me had I known about him I would have sent more." He replied.

"Rhett is gonna need you after I'm gone. You are the only family he has left. I want you to look after him and push him to go after his dreams. Don't tell him that I told you this, but I know that his shoulder healed just fine and he could have had a career, but he gave it up to look after me. Don't let him waste his talent. You stay on him; do you hear me?" She ordered.

"Yes ma'am, you don't have to worry about him. He will be taken care of and I will be on him like white on rice." He promised her. He took her hand when she reached for his.

"Give him love and understandin' while he grieves, but don't let him become your daddy. You better than anyone know how painful that road is." Her words were getting harder to form.

"You have my word that he will have all the love he can stand and then some. He's not gonna be Paul. If I even suspect it I will put him into rehab myself." He swore to her.

"You're a good man and that's exactly what he needs in his life." She replied.

"I'm gonna get Rhett for you again, but I'm not leavin' him. I'm gonna be here for him as long as it takes." He let go of her hand and went to fetch his brother. He was talking to Rose's doctor when he got back outside.

"How much time does she have left?" Rhett asked the doctor.

"It's hard to say it could be hours or she could last a few more days. Honestly though, if she makes it through the day I'll be surprised. And you want it that way. We are keeping her comfortable, but she's still suffering." The doctor replied.

"Thank you for your honesty." Rhett's voice was hoarse.

"Of course, if you need anything you just let me know." The doctor added before he walked away.

"Rhett, she's wantin' you again." Deacon put his hand on his shoulder.

Rhett looked at him his eyes swimming with tears. "Deacon, what am I gonna do?"

"Right now you're gonna go in there and be strong for her. Later you get to fall apart and I'll be strong for you. Go on and say goodbye to your momma. A lot of people don't get this chance and they regret it." Deacon squeezed his shoulder affectionately.

Rhett nodded his head weakly. "I can do that."

"I'm right here, I ain't goin' anywhere. I'll be with you as long as this takes." Deacon assured him.

"I'm gonna go in there now." Rhett said.

"Ok, I'll be here I just have to make a call." Deacon took his hand off his shoulder and let him go back to his mother's side. He pulled his phone out and called Rayna. "Hey, babe, it's me. Listen I'm probably gonna be here awhile. I can't leave him to face this alone. I'll call you when I know somethin' more." He nodded his head as he listened to what she had to say. "I love you too, baby. Talk to you later." He hung up.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Deacon wasn't surprised at all when Rayna showed up in the waiting room a few hours later.

"Hey, babe," Rayna hugged him when he stood up.

"Ray, I'm glad you're here, but you didn't have to come." He kissed her.

"Of course I did. He's your brother and he's going through hell right now. What kind of wife would I be if I didn't show up? I got the girls off to school and I dropped the boys off with your momma and Bev. You have nothing to worry about you can focus on Rhett." She rested her head against his chest.

"I really don't deserve you sometimes." He replied.

"And there are times that I don't deserve you, but we always show up for each other." She tugged on his hand and pulled him down in the chair beside hers.

They had only been sitting in the waiting room a couple of hours when Rhett came in with a tear stained face.

"Come here, little brother." Deacon pulled him into a hug and rubbed his back. "I'm sorry."

"Thank you," Rhett sighed. He pulled away from Deacon and played with the envelope that was in his hand. "She, uh, she left instructions for her final wishes. I just don't think I can do it. I'm not strong enough for this." He took a ragged breath that turned into a sob.

Rayna gently took the envelope out of his hand. "You don't have to be strong, sweetie. That's what we're here for. I'll take care of this for you. You just lean on your brother as hard as you have to. He can hold you up he's strong." She gave him a big hug and kissed his cheek.

"You don't have to do this." Rhett argued through his sobs.

"Yes I do. You're his brother that makes you my brother too. I will handle everything." She replied.

"Thank you, thank you so much." Rhett completely broke down and cried against her shoulder.

"Come on, let's get you out of here." Deacon took him by the arm and started to guide him out.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter, I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	63. Chapter 63

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 63

"How's he doing?" Rayna asked Deacon when she walked into their hotel suite.

"He's sleepin' right now. When he finally got done cryin' I sent to take a hot shower and get in bed. He should sleep for awhile. He may have drank several bottles of whiskey from the mini bar and I may not have stopped him. How did things go at the funeral home?" Deacon asked.

"I got everythin' taken care of. She left instructions on what was to be done and I followed them to the letter. She's gonna be laid out and buried tomorrow. She wanted to get things over with quickly. I think she wanted to spare him the pain of dragging it out. It's probably just as well that he's numb for right now he needs the sleep." She replied.

"That's good, that's real good. I think the sooner we can get him back to Nashville the better. This town is absolutely toxic to some people me included." He observed.

"How are you doing being back here? I've been so focused on Rhett that I forgot how hard it is on you." She wrapped her arms around him from behind.

"You know; six months ago this would have been unthinkable, but I'm doin' alright. Babe, I ain't the haunted man I used to be. I finally beat back my demons. They're gone for good. Part of it was Paul and what he did to momma and the other part of it was Vince. Hearin' Dixie say that it wasn't my fault and havin' Big Jack thank for always bein' there for him helped that." He leaned back into her embrace.

"I'm so glad to hear you say that." She kissed the top of his head.

"What do you say to gettin' outta here and I show you my old stompin' grounds? I've had you here before, but I've never showed you my good memories. I think it's time to fix that." He took her hand and kissed it.

"I think that's a great idea." She agreed.

He stood up and pulled her into his arms. "You are too good to me, baby, I love you so much. Thank you for bein' so good with my brother." He kissed her lips tenderly.

"Deacon, you've always gone above and beyond for me too. I love you more. And you don't have to thank me he's family and this is what you do for family." She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Come on, let's go explorin'. You haven't seen Natchez unless you do it on foot. I'll send Rhett a text and have him meet us when he wakes up. I don't want to disturb him right now." He grabbed the key card and put it in his pocket.

"Let's go, I'm excited to finally really see where you grew up. You've never wanted to show me before." She looped her arm through his.

"Darlin', if I'd shown you all this sooner you'd have ran the other way. Or at the very least you would have thought twice 'bout bringin' my children into the world." He chuckled as they walked out the door.

"There is nothing and no one that has even been able to change my mind about you. Were you that bad as a kid?" She asked.

"It wasn't so much that I was bad. I just never went home until I absolutely had to. I didn't want to take the risk of havin' a run in with Paul. He stayed gone as much as he could doin' his own thing, but if he was home we had to walk 'round on eggshells worried about settin' him off. After he realized he couldn't beat on us anymore he was still verbally abusive. He'd tie one on and get mean mouthed and I didn't want to be 'round for that. All he ever told me was that I'd never amount to anythin'." He explained to her.

"I'd say that you proved him wrong in spades." She held on to his arm a little tighter.

"That was only after I almost proved him right." He countered.

"You may have been a drunk, but you never came close to proving him right. You proved him wrong the minute you left this place and became the go to guitar player in Nashville." She kissed his cheek.

"I sure love you." He walked her down to the docks.

"What are we doing here?" She looked confused.

"This was my first job. I was about ten or so. The guys used to pay me to run down to the corner store and buy their cigarettes for them. Then when I got a little bit older they'd throw a little money my way to sweep out the warehouse for them and to help them load stuff up on the trucks." He told her as he showed her around.

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" She laughed.

"Because you always think the worst of me." He grinned.

"I wonder why." She arched her eyebrow at him.

"Fair enough," He couldn't argue with her on that one.

"Show me more, babe." She urged him.

Deacon led her next to a little hole in the wall bar. "This is where I played my first gig and every gig I had until I left. It was one of the only places I could be assured that Paul wasn't gonna to be because him and the owner didn't get along. Mike only let me play here to spite him, but it gave me a chance to be heard."

"How old were you?" Rayna asked.

"I was probably about fourteen or fifteen. I made pretty good money in tips to play whatever all those old drunks in there requested. No only was it one of the best parts of my childhood, but I could hide that money from Paul and slip it to momma when he wasn't around. There were a lot of times that that kept us from goin' hungry and kept the electric on." He answered her.

"You've always been a good man, Deacon." She told him.

"I did what I had to in order to survive, babe." He shrugged his shoulders and blushed a little bit.

Next he walked her to his old high school. They stood outside the fence watching the football players practice.

She studied her husband as he watched with a smile on his face. "Good memories here, babe?"

"Only some of the best. I spent four years on this football field. I don't mean to brag, but I was the quarterback of the state championship team two years runnin'. I also was a pretty good baseball player." He informed her.

"I never realized that you were such an athlete." She replied.

"I'm just full of surprises, baby." He smiled at her.

"Yes you are." She wrapped her arm around his waist.

"What do you say we go get some food? I don't know about you, but I could eat." He suggested.

"That sounds like the best idea I've heard all day. I'll call Rhett and wake him up, so we can get some food in him too. He probably needs it after you let him drink God alone knows how much." She agreed with him.

"I didn't let him drink that much. Just enough to take the edge off." He corrected her.

"He's a Claybourne just enough to take the edge off for you people is drunk for normal people." She pointed out to him.

"I would argue with you, but you kinda hit the nail on the head with that one." He chuckled.

* * *

A half hour later Rayna and Deacon were seated in a booth at the diner where June and Beverly had worked. Deacon waved to Rhett when he walked in.

Rhett slid into the booth. "Hey, guys,"

"How you doin', sweetie?" Rayna smiled softly.

"I'll be alright, at least I know that she's not in pain anymore." Rhett replied.

"If you need anythin' at all you don't hesitate to tell us that's what we're here for." Deacon patted his hand.

"I can't ask you two to put your lives on pause to keep me company. I'll be fine." Rhett assured him.

"Rhett, you're family. We are here as long as you need us." Rayna grabbed his hand. "I made the arrangements for your momma's service. She wanted everything done in one day. So, she will be laid out tomorrow morning and her funeral will be in the afternoon."

"Thank you, for takin' care of that for me. There was no way I could handle it. That sounds like her she was never one to make a big fuss." Rhett smiled a little.

"She pretty much took care of everything. The funeral home knew who to contact and she had everything picked out already. There wasn't much for me to take care of." She told him.

"She was a control freak. It drove her crazy that I was so laid back 'bout some things. That woman went from the time the sun came up 'til the time it went down." Rhett laughed softly.

"That sounds like someone else that I know." She looked at Deacon pointedly.

"I take care of business when it needs to be handle. Don't get me started on you, Miss I'm Always Late." Deacon teased her.

"Sugar, I ain't late I'm always right on time." She smirked.

"See what I have to put up with? Can I interest in takin' her off my hands for a little while? She ain't got many housewife skills, but I have it on good authority that you can make a little bit of money off of her if she sings." Deacon laughed and dodged a half hearted swat that she threw his way.

"Sorry, bro, I ain't got a wife I don't need one as high maintenance as yours." Rhett laughed.

"Deacon John, so help me God you keep it up and you're gonna be on the couch tonight." She warned him. "Rhett, don't laugh at him he's not funny." She turned to her brother-in-law.

"Little Deacon Claybourne, there is no way that's you." An elderly man walked over to the booth.

"You better believe it's me, Sid." Deacon stood up and shook his hand.

"You don't show your face around here that often and now you stole your momma and your sister out from under me. I oughta throw down on ya, but I'll behave myself." Sid joked around with him.

"I didn't steal 'em you best lay that blame where it goes. My kids did that just fine with no help from me. I do enough on my own I don't need the blame for that too." Deacon clapped him on the back. "Sid, this is my wife Rayna and my brother, Rhett."

"I'm old not stupid I know who your wife is. I do have a tv you know? And I know who your brother is too. You're not the only local boy that made good 'round here. You both look like that son of bitch that fathered ya. Hell, Deacon, you're damn near old enough to be his daddy." Sid gave him a look. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Jaymes, this is the worst bus boy that I ever employed and you deserve a medal for dealin' with him."

"Please call me Rayna. It's a good thing he plays guitar as well as he does or there'd be no hope for him." Rayna shook hands with the old man.

"Rhett, I was sorry to hear 'bout your momma." Sid told the young man.

"Thanks, Sid," Rhett gave him a small smile.

* * *

"Rhett, did you leave the tv on?" Rayna asked as she slipped the key card into the door. She could hear voices coming from the other side of the door.

"Nope, I didn't have the tv on." Rhett shook his head.

"Well, this oughta be good." Deacon drawled out.

"What are you two doin' here?" Rayna groaned when she opened the door.

Maddie and JC sat on the couch playing around on their guitars.

"JC and I couldn't just sit at home and do nothing and I may have talked Aunt Tandy into calling me out of school early. Then he maybe got us a flight out here." Maddie explained.

"She maybe used the computer to order the tickets on using my information, because she's a minor and I'm not." JC corrected.

"Somehow I believe both of you and I know better than to ask." Deacon shook his head.

"I'm really sorry about your mom, Rhett." Maddie gave her uncle a big hug.

"Thanks, Maddie." Rhett hugged her back.

"I don't know whether to be touched that she was so thoughtful or get on to her for conning her aunt." Rayna couldn't decide which was the better option.

"I have a pretty good question. How'd you know which hotel we were in?" Deacon asked.

"Mom always has Uncle Bucky make hotel reservations under her married name. I found out from him which hotel you were in and then once we got here all I had to do was show my ID and they gave me a key to the room." Maddie answered.

"She hasn't mentioned the best part yet." JC chimed in.

"There's more to this story?" Rayna asked. She was a little scared to find out what else there was.

"Scarlett and Gunnar are in the suite next door, because they may or may not have caught us in the middle of planning our trip." Maddie admitted.

"We can live with that. That's not completely horrible news." Deacon took that in stride.

"It could be much worse than that Will and Mack could be here." Rayna had to agree there.

"They should be here any time now." JC mumbled.

"For the sake of my sanity I'm gonna pretend that I didn't hear that." Rayna ran her hands over her face. Gunnar, Will, JC, and Mack together in the same place could be a little much to handle sometimes.

"Babe, will you be ok here if I run out and take care of somethin' real quick?" Deacon asked.

"Yeah of course I will be fine. You go do what you need to do." Rayna assured him.

Deacon picked up the keys to his rental truck. "Maddie, come with me. As long as you're here I might as well get this over with. I know you have questions and I'm gonna give you some answers.

"Ok, dad," Maddie agreed. She wasn't sure what he wanted with her, but she was just going with the flow.

* * *

Deacon drove Maddie out to his old trailer in silence. He wasn't sure what to say to his daughter and she was content to let him sort things out in his own time. He pulled into the driveway and put the truck in park.

"Dad, where are we?" Maddie finally broke the silence.

"This is where I grew up, Maddie. It ain't much, but this is where I used to live." Deacon told her.

"So, most of Route Three is true?" She asked.

"I took some creative license with a few lines, but for the most part it's true. While I'm in the right frame of mind you can ask me anythin' you want to ask me and I will answer it the best I can." He replied.

"Did you leave because everything was so bad?" She inquired.

"I left because I had to, Maddie, this was no life for me. I had to leave or I probably wouldn't still be on this earth today. I would have drank myself to death and that's not a lie." He gave a simple answer that she could wrap her head around. He still wasn't ready to tell her that Paul had pulled a gun on him.

"So this is where you and Aunt Bev grew up?" She changed the subject.

"Yeah and Scarlett for a little while too. That was before I was able to send them enough money to get them out of here." He explained. "Do you wanna go inside?"

"That won't be too hard on you?" She made sure that he really wanted to do this.

"If I don't just do this I will never be ready for it." He got up of the truck and walked up the front steps before he could change his mind. He took the key out of his wallet and slipped it in the lock. "Watch your step." He cautioned his daughter. He offered her his hand and walked into the trailer with her.

Things inside still looked the way they had when he had been there eight months before.

"Well, this is it." He made a sweeping gesture with his hand.

"It's kinda small isn't it?" She wrinkled up her nose at the stale smell.

"There were times that we were lucky to have this. Your mawmaw worked herself half to death to make sure that we kept a roof over our heads. She had to keep her money hidden from Paul so he didn't drink and gamble it all away. That man couldn't keep a job and if he did he blew his whole paycheck the day he got it." He shook his head.

"Where's your room?" She inquired.

"Follow me and I will show you where all the magic started." He led her back to his bedroom. "Here we are." He sat down on his bed. "I used to lay on this bed for hours playing my guitar and perfecting my skills. Most of what I knew my pawpaw either taught me or I taught myself."

She sat down next to him. "Wow, dad, this is nothing like mom's old room at pawpaw's house. This is actually pretty awesome." She grinned and looked around at all the music posters that were still on the wall.

Deacon laughed at a memory before he replied. "Your momma always liked that this was simpler than where she grew up too. Her, Scarlett, and me all slept in this bed once. I may have been hangin' halfway off the bed, but I'll be damned if it wasn't one of the best times of my life."

Maddie got up and opened one of the drawers in Deacon's dresser. "A drawer full of guitar picks imagine that." She rolled her eyes playfully. She pocketed some of the guitar picks.

"You have no room to talk at all. And you know what I'm like I lose guitar picks all the time. I found one in Jayme's crib the other day. Though I don't know that I can take the blame for that. That could have been you or me that did it." He arched his eyebrow at her.

"I'm not taking the blame for that. I don't mess with Jayme unless I have to. If you would have said Deac I would have said maybe, but Jayme is hell on wheels. He likes to pull my hair and he still spits up a lot." She denied.

"I know Jayme is the difficult one. He takes after your momma that way. We hit the nail on the head when we named those boys." He laughed and shook his head.

"Mom says that he gets it from you." She informed him.

"That is such a lie. I'm really laid back until someone messes with me then my temper comes out to play. It doesn't take much to get your momma all riled up and she knows it. I'm gonna have to talk to that woman 'bout what she's tellin' ya." He knew that Rayna hadn't been far off the mark, but he wasn't going to admit to it.

"Whatever you say, dad." She turned around and smirked at him.

"If you're gonna side with your momma I'm gonna stop takin' your side when you two get into it." He threatened.

"I'm not siding with mom. I'm just telling you what she said." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Come on let's get out of here and get back to the hotel. I don't want like to hang out here any longer than I have to." He got up and he saw Maddie admiring the posters that he had left behind. "If you want any of those take them. I just took the ones I wanted and put them in the boys' room. You're more than welcome to anythin' in here that you want."

She opened another drawer. "I'm just going to take this t-shirt." It read property of Natchez High School Baseball Team.

"There should be another one there that is from the football team. Take it for your momma. She likes to steal all my t-shirts anyway she might as well have that one too." He laughed softly. Rayna had a long established history of stealing his t-shirts for her personal use. When they got back together he found shirts that he had thought he'd lost years ago in her drawer.

* * *

"I would say that I'm surprised to see you here, but that would be a lie." Rayna opened the door of the hotel room for Bev and Tandy. They had Daphne with them.

"Babe, just go with it." Tandy told her sister.

"Come here, Baby Brother." Beverly held her arms open to Rhett.

Rhett went over and allowed his sister to hug him. "Thanks for comin', Bev."

Rayna put her arms around Daphne. "Hey, baby girl."

"Hi, mom," Daphne smiled up at her.

"Where are my baby boys? My girls are both here, but they can pretty well take care of themselves. I'm worried about the two that need around the clock care." Rayna looked between Tandy and Beverly.

"We sold them to the highest bidder." Tandy deadpanned. "Relax, they are with June then Bucky has graciously volunteered to take them for the night. When I say he volunteered I mean I twisted his arm and told him he was going to do whether he wanted to or not."

"Poor Buck, no one should have to put up with those two boys alone." Rayna could only shake her head at this point.

"Where's Maddie?" Beverly asked.

"Your brother took her to your old trailer I think. He gave me the walking tour of his old hangouts earlier. He is a completely different man than he was even six months ago. He wasn't capable of that then. I don't know what changed, but he's in a much better place now." Rayna answered her.

"Damn it tell me that I'm losin' my mind and the two evil stepsisters aren't here right now." Deacon walked into the hotel and groaned.

"You're not losing your mind. And how many times have I told you not to insult our sisters? They are our babysitters" Rayna warned him.

"I say worse than that 'bout them all the time." Deacon scoffed.

"It doesn't mean now is the time for your comments." Rayna rolled her eyes.

"It's always the time for my comments." Deacon retorted.

Rhett gestured Maddie and Daphne over to him. He put a hand on each of their shoulders. "My momma's favorite hymn was Amazin' Grace and I was hopin' that you two would sing it at her service for me."

"Of course." Maddie gave him a small smile.

"Sure, Rhett." Daphne chirped happily.

"Thank ya'll, so much. I know you two will do great." Rhett hugged them both tightly.

"It's no problem at all. You're our uncle we'd do anything for you." Maddie assured him.

"Don't listen to her, Rhett, she's a con artist." Gunnar tried to lighten the mood.

"Gunnar, keep talking. You won't have to worry about making it down the aisle. I'm telling you I will get JC to take you out." Maddie turned and shot Gunnar a look.

"Again I refer to the fact that I have hired Mack as my bodyguard." Gunnar crossed his arms over his chest.

"Again I bring up the fact that we don't have the money for you to pay a pro hockey player to be your bodyguard. Gunnar, all we have so far is the money from our single and our merchandise sales. When we put our album out hire Mack all you want to. I'm even hire him for you, but until then man up and fight your own battles with my cousin." Scarlett rolled her eyes at her fiancé.

"Scarlett, he hired him with a case of beer. I'm pretty sure that's not a legally bindin' contract and you have nothin' to worry 'bout." Rhett pointed out to her.

"Did they both agree to him being his bodyguard in exchange for a case of beer?" Tandy asked.

"Yeah, they did they were both drunk and they wrote it on a napkin." Will volunteered.

"Then it's a legally binding document. That's all I'm gonna say." Tandy threw out there.

"Deacon is right they are the evil stepsisters. I can't even deal with them. I'm cleaning out the mini bar as long as your name isn't Deacon and you're not severely underage you're welcome to join me." Rayna opened up the mini bar and started taking bottles out.

"Oh boy, I'm not even gonna try to stop this. I'm just gonna be on food duty I guess." Deacon laughed and shook his head. There was nothing more he could do about the situation.

* * *

A/N: I thought I would give you guys something to brighten your day with the finale airing tonight. We've got this we can #bringbacknashville. Until next time please review.


	64. Chapter 64

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 64

"Hey ya'll quiet down and behave it's gettin' ready to come on." Deacon shushed the people sitting around the living room with him. They were watching the announcements for the CMA nominees.

"Deacon, you know that none of them know the meaning of those words. You might as well not even bother trying to get them to behave." Rayna leaned over and kissed him.

"Do you two have to be so touchy feely all the time? Do you have any clue how embarrassing it is?" Maddie rolled her eyes at them.

"Let 'em be, Cricket. That could be us one day." JC teased her.

"No, I refuse to scar our future children the way those two have scarred me." Maddie shook her head.

"Maddie, it should have been obvious to you before they got married that your momma and daddy like each other a little bit too much." Scarlett bounced Jaymes on her knee.

"That's just gross and I don't want to think about it." Maddie had a disgusted look on her face.

"Haven't I vetoed this topic with at least three different people?" Deacon looked around the room.

"You've tried to veto this topic with me and the evil stepsisters as you call them, but it didn't work." Sadie chimed in. She was holding Little Deacon and playing with him.

"Of course it doesn't work my wife doesn't help matters at all when it comes to that. I know ya'll talk 'bout everythin' you know." Deacon replied.

"They ain't the only ones. If Gunnar knows somethin' then everyone knows it." Will supplied.

"That is not true. I knew that you were gay for the longest time and I didn't tell anyone." Gunnar defended himself.

"And you know there's the part where he dated my best friend behind my back and didn't tell me for a long time." Scarlett added.

"I'm never gonna live that down am I?" Gunnar sighed.

"No, you're not. You should be smart enough to know that much." Avery pointed out to him.

"With as much as I've screwed up with her she has plenty to hold over my head for the rest of our lives." Gunnar groaned loudly.

"That's how marriage works. At least that's how my marriage works." Juliette laughed. She was only giving him a hard time.

"If my marriage worked that way we would fight way more than we already do. We both have many things to hold over the other's head." Rayna could only shake her head sometimes.

"Maddie, we can't even blame this on Gunnar this time. You started this." JC smirked but then hid his face when Maddie scowled at him.

"It wouldn't be a problem if my parents could keep their hands to themselves." Maddie retorted.

"Maddie, it's a lost cause just stop trying." Tandy advised her niece.

"Tandy, whatever you're thinking of saying right now save it for later at the office. You're obviously already traumatized Maddie I don't need you doing the same thing to Daphne." Rayna gave her sister a look.

"I didn't even say anything." Tandy defended.

"Tandy, I've learned over the years with the two of you that neither one of you really has to say anything to the other for you to get into it." Bucky shrank back from the look she gave him.

"Oh, thank God, the announcements are starting." Deacon turned the tv up.

The presenter first read the nominees for musician of the year. Deacon scored a nomination there.

"The nominees for music video of the year are Will Lexington Spinning Revolver." The presenter read off.

Will stood up and cheered. "Holy crap, wow." He didn't really know what to say.

"The nominees for musical event are Juliette Barnes Mississippi Flood, Will Lexington and JC Grayson Beer For My Horses." The presenter kept going down the list but loud cheers had erupted in the living room.

"I'm gonna hear this for the rest of my life how those rooftop concerts were really a good idea." Rayna groaned playfully.

"My impulsive nature does result in somethin' good every now and then." Juliette smirked.

"Texas Forever!" Will and JC bumped knuckles.

"Alright, ya'll puppies quiet down." Deacon got them settled down.

"The nominees for song of the year are Just As I Am Deacon Claybourne," The presenter went on.

"God, dad, that's two now." Maddie teased her father.

"I ain't keepin' score it don't matter." Deacon shrugged it off. He still wasn't used to all the attention he'd been getting lately.

"The nominees for single of the year are Novocaine Sadie Stone, A Man Who was Gonna Die Young Deacon Claybourne." The presenter moved on to the next category.

"I'll be damned." Deacon was absolutely floored.

"I'm just gonna need to take a minute and let this sink in. I don't even care if I win or not. To be nominated in the same category as an artist like Deacon says everything that I need to know." Sadie was a little stunned.

"The nominees for album of the year are About A Girl Deacon Claybourne," The presenter got to Album of the Year.

The blood was roaring in Deacon's ears now he had expected this nomination, but it was still a surprise.

"That's the one right there, babe. I knew that was coming." Rayna wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You did call that one, baby." Deacon grinned at her.

"The nominees for duet of the year are, Think of You JC Grayson and Casey Miller, Traveling Soldier Maddie Claybourne and JC Grayson," That was all the presenter got out before everyone in the living room went wild.

"Oh my God, that did not just happen did it?" Maddie gasped.

"Cricket, that just happened. I'm a little shocked, but I'm pretty sure it just happened. I'm pretty positive that I just heard my name twice." JC wrapped his arms around her and kissed her.

"The nominees for vocal group or duo are Florida Georgia Line, Maddie and Tae, The Band Perry, and The Exes." The presenter read off.

"Scarlett tell me that you heard that too and I'm not hearin' things." Gunnar had his usual goofy grin on his face.

"I heard it, Gunnar, you ain't goin' crazy for a change." Scarlett smiled back at him.

"The nominees for best new artist are Chris Janson, Chris Stapleton, Casey Miller, and JC Grayson." The presenter went on.

"Hell yes, whew! Holy shit!" JC whooped loudly.

"JC, I am so proud of you." Maddie wrapped her arms around his neck.

"The nominees for female vocalist of the year are Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, Juliette Barnes, and Rayna Jaymes." The presenter read the names off.

"Aw hell, that's just what we all need a damn diva off between those two. They were bad enough already." Deacon teased.

"It's not a diva off the last two years we've both won once." Rayna corrected him.

"So she says I'm not old enough to think that way yet." Juliette joked.

"God help me." Avery groaned.

"The nominees for male vocalist of the year are Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean, Luke Wheeler, and Deacon Claybourne."

Deacon could have been knocked over with a feather at that point. Never in his wildest dreams had he expected that nomination. He was just a simple singer songwriter and one of the best guitar players in the business. He wasn't used to being in the spotlight. He was the sideshow and he'd accepted that about himself.

"Uncle Deacon, could you be a little bit more excited?" Scarlett asked him.

"I'll get excited once the shock wears off." Deacon replied.

Daphne launched herself into Deacon's arms. "Deacon, you're going to clean house."

"Thanks, Squirt, I'm gonna do my best." Deacon hugged her tightly.

"Here comes the big one." Maddie said.

"The nominees for entertainer of the year are Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Luke Wheeler, and Rayna Jaymes."

"Mom, that's two years in a row for entertainer or the year and three in a row for female vocalist." Maddie gushed. Things between her and Rayna had gotten so much better since she'd signed her as a real artist on the label.

Bucky checked his cell phone. "Well, I'd say it's time for me to get to work. Highway Sixty-five just had a very big day. We have a least one artist in all the major categories and we do have artists in all the categories. Deacon, I will get with Rusty and have him get your stuff sorted out."

"Thanks, Buck, I know that you've got it handled." Deacon replied.

Rayna checked her cell. "Ugh, it's Jeff. Apparently I have a Marcus related emergency to deal with."

"You know that's not all you have on the books for the day. Cole is announcing his mayoral candidacy tonight." Tandy reminded her.

"I'm well aware of that. I just need to go talk Marcus down off the ledge I guess. I don't know what is going on. I just know that if Jeff says I need to handle it I probably need to handle it, because he wouldn't call me if he could avoid it." Rayna sighed.

"Babe, I'm on with Watty in an hour I've gotta get goin'. How are the girls gettin' to school?" Deacon asked.

JC checked his watch. "If it's alright with ya'll I'll take 'em. I have enough time to do that before Will and I need to be at that charity skeet shoot."

"That would be great, Jimmy. You're on the approved pick up list too. I should be free to get 'em, but if I'm not I'll let you know." Deacon patted him on the back. "Girls, go grab your stuff." Maddie and Daphne went off to do what as he said.

"Aren't you forgetting about the two little people?" Tandy asked him.

"No, I'm droppin' them with my momma before I head over to do Watty's show." Deacon replied.

"You're dragging Rhett out of the house today right?" Rayna asked. Rhett had barely left the house since they came back to Nashville.

"No, Mack is actually going to lure him out of the house today. I thought I would try that first and then go over and drag him out by force if it doesn't work." Deacon explained to her.

"Deacon, if you don't want to have to drag the boys over to June, Juliette and I can watch them. We have nothing else to do today and I owe you and Rayna more than a few for all the times you've watched Cadence." Avery offered.

"Avery, I really appreciate that offer and I'd take you up on it if my momma wouldn't have my ass. She gets a little testy if she doesn't get alone time with them at least twice a week." Deacon laughed.

* * *

"What's going on, Jeff?" Rayna asked when she stepped into the recording studio.

"Marcus just wanted his producer and I was only relaying his message." Jeff replied with his usual smirk.

"How long as he been here? I just got him out of here at three this morning." She ran her hands over her face. Marcus Keen was quite possibly going to be the death of her.

"He's only been here an hour or two." He took a sip out of his coffee cup.

"I guess I better get to work then. I have to be out of here at a reasonable hour tonight I have other things to do." She went over to the control board and started working.

Deacon stopped by around lunchtime with the boys. "Hey, momma, we know that you're workin' hard, but we thought that maybe you could use some lunch."

"I am starvin'. How did you boys know?" Rayna bent down and kissed the boys and then she pecked Deacon's lips.

"We are just good like that. We know you very well." He smiled back at her. "Where's Satan?" He inquired about Jeff.

"He just stepped out to take a call or something I have no idea where he went and frankly I'm glad. It's all I can do not to strangle him sometimes. He's good at this job and he saves me a lot of hassle, but still it's Jeff." She rolled her eyes. She hit the intercom button. "Marcus, take a half hour break. I'm taking one whether you do or not, so you will be on your own for at least that long."

"Damn, you just laid down the law." Deacon knew that she had it in her. She'd used that authoritative voice on him plenty of times before.

"Darlin', you don't know what time I got home last night. You and those boys were all three sprawled out in the middle of the bed sleeping." Rayna replied.

"You couldn't have got home last night then we were up until midnight." He looked at her a little confused.

"Exactly, I got home going on four this morning. He doesn't know when to give it a rest. He would go around the clock if I let him." She sighed.

"We used to spend hours in the studio like that. And then we got older." He shrugged his shoulders.

"We would come into the studio at midnight drunk and record all night and it would sound amazing. Then we'd take a cab back to the apartment and sleep until five or six in the afternoon." She laughed.

"It really is a miracle that we are still alive." He shook his head.

"What did you bring me for lunch?" She really was starving.

He held up a brown paper bag. "Momma sent you lunch. She made her famous fried chicken and the works to go with it. She also sent you a jug of her sweet tea. She said you better eat at least half of it you're gettin' way too thin for her likin'. She also said if you wanna argue 'bout it you're more than welcome to call her."

"Momma June has spoken. I better not argue with her. That woman is tough as nails and she raised you, so I know she can out stubborn me." She laughed.

"Rayna, what did you make me stop for?" Marcus asked as he came into the booth.

"I have to eat and I have places I have to be later. We were here all night last night. It's not gonna kill you to take a break. I may kill you if you don't and it may kill me." Rayna told him.

"What am I supposed to do if you take a break?" Marcus wondered.

"Try taking a nap or something. Go get Jeff to show you around Nashville. Just get out of this studio for a little while." Rayna replied. She didn't care what he did as long as he gave her a little bit of peace.

Marcus ignored her in favor of eyeing up Deacon. "Whoa, wait a minute you're Deacon Claybourne."

"That's what they tell me anyway." Deacon drawled.

"You're only one of the best songwriters in the business. I need to record one of your songs on this album." Marcus charged full steam ahead into another one of his ideas.

"We may be able to work somethin' out regardin' that. I'm kinda busy in producer mode right now. I'm workin' on my daughters' albums, but I could probably carve out some time to write with you." Deacon replied.

"Yeah sure, whatever you want, my man." Marcus clapped him on the back. "Where's Jeff?"

"He just stepped out to make a call he should be out in the hallway." Rayna explained to him.

"I think I'm gonna call it a day and get Jeff to show me around." Marcus' moods changed on a whim.

"That sounds good to me." Rayna agreed with him. She breathed a sigh of relief when he walked out.

"Come on, baby, let's get you out of here before he changes his mind." Deacon wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"We gotta eat and pick the girls up. Then we have to go home and get ready for Cole's thing tonight. We promised him that we would play." She leaned against his side.

"I know. I suppose this is one of those times when you're gonna tell me that I can't wear jeans and flannel." He mused.

"This is absolutely one of those times I'm gonna tell you that you need to dress nicely." She confirmed.

* * *

"Pull!" JC yelled out. He brought the stock of his shotgun up to his shoulder and he fired two shots at the clay birdies that had been launched into the air. He shattered them both. He was wearing a camo ball cap instead of his usual cowboy hat. He had on earmuffs and shooting glasses.

He and Will had signed up for this skeet shoot months ago. Or rather Rayna had signed them up to represent Highway 65. It was being held at the country club.

"Nicely done, partner." Will stepped up to the shooting line. "Pull!" He shattered the two targets effortlessly.

"At the end of this round the leader boards for each heat are Will Lexington and JC Grayson of Highway Sixty-five sitting on top. And Luke Wheeler and Casey Miller for Wheelin' Dealin' Records on top for the other. The next round will decide the winner." The announcer said.

"JC, it looks like that new shotgun is working out very well for you." Lamar walked over and patted the teen on the back.

"Yes sir, Mr. Wyatt," JC smiled at him.

"How many times do I have to ask you to call me Lamar?" Lamar gave him a look.

"Just once more like always, Lamar." JC chuckled nervously.

"That's a boy." Lamar smiled at him. "Will, how are you?"

"I can't complain, Lamar. How are you?" Will shook his hand.

"I'm doing good, son." Lamar replied.

"I'm a little surprised to see you here." JC commented.

"My company is one of the sponsors. You should just be thinking about what charity you want that check made out to. You two have this thing all sewn up. It's yours to lose." Lamar advised them.

"We will keep that in mind." Will smiled.

"Well, it looks like we got us some competition here." Luke walked up with a cocky gait. He touched the brim of his hat and nodded in Will's direction. "Will, it's good to see you."

"Good to see you too, Luke." Will replied stiffly.

"And there's the man of the hour. JC, that many nominations for a baby artist is very impressive. Is there anythin' I can do to get you over at Wheelin' Dealin'?" Luke asked him.

"No sir, I'm happy where I am. Highway Sixty-five is my home. You dance with the one who brought you." JC replied.

"That's fair enough. Doesn't mean I won't reach out to you to get you to work with Casey more in the future." Luke nodded his head.

"Just let me know it all depends on my schedule." JC left it at that.

"How about that nomination for our song?" Casey smiled at him flirtatiously.

"I say it's pretty damn impressive." JC was totally oblivious to the fact she was flirting with him. It wouldn't do her any good anyway he only had eyes for Maddie.

"What do you say you go as my date?" Casey broached the subject.

"I'm pretty sure the Claybourne sisters already staked a claim on me. As much as I would like to I'm gonna have to pass." JC was a diplomatic as he could be under the circumstances.

"I guess I'll just have to settle for bein' your duet partner and for beatin' your ass out here shootin' skeet." Casey shrugged her shoulders.

"Darlin', I'm from Texas if there's two things I do extremely well it's shoot skeet and rope steers you don't stand a chance. You're a damn fine shot, but you don't hold a candle in the wind. I say bring it on." JC smirked.

"Care to put your money where that big mouth is?" Casey arched her eyebrow at him.

"You're on. What kinda wager did you have in mind?" JC couldn't back down from a bet.

"I say winner gets whatever they want within reason." Casey replied.

"I can live with that. It's a deal." JC offered her his hand.

"Pleasure doin' business with you. Luke and I better get goin' so we can be prepared to beat you two." Casey smirked and walked off with Luke.

"Just so you know your girlfriend doesn't like her at all." Will told JC.

"Gee, Will, think for a minute who my girlfriend's parents are and then ask yourself if she didn't make that known to me a long time ago." JC rolled his eyes.

"Ok, you're right she's got her daddy's temper and her momma's tendency to not suffer bullshit. She told you that she doesn't like Casey awhile ago." Will said after thinking it over.

"We have a winner there." JC laughed.

"JC, you are aware that that little girl was flirting with you right?" Lamar asked him.

"No, I wasn't aware of that. I just thought I was like her only friend so she latched on to me." JC replied honestly.

"Lamar, in his defense we all had to tell him that Maddie was into him." Will jumped in.

"I don't worry about him hurting my granddaughter. They call my son-in-law Freakin' Deacon for a reason. Let's just say he'd find out that reason if he were to hurt his beloved oldest daughter. He would only do bodily harm to him, me I would do so much worse." Lamar state causally.

"I don't plan on hurtin' her. As far as I'm concerned I never want to date anyone else I'm done. I found my other half." JC promised.

"Make sure you remember that." Lamar said and he turned to Will again. "And you keep that Mack around. I like him better than Kevin."

"I think ya'll would happily take Mack in and kick me out of this little makeshift family if you could." Will laughed.

* * *

Mack let himself into what had become Deacon's house of strays using the key that Deacon had given him to get in. He took one look around the living room and he shook his head. It was obvious that Rhett and JC weren't big on cleaning house. The sink was overflowing with dishes and the coffee table with littered with empty beer bottles and food containers.

Rhett was passed out facedown on the couch snoring loudly.

Mack nudged him gently to wake him up. "Rhett, come on get up."

Rhett flipped over on his back and sat up with a loud groan. "Mack, what the hell are you doin' here? And why the fuck is it so bright?"

"I came over to see if you wanted to come hang out today. A bunch of us from the team are getting together for a pickup game of street hockey and I thought you might want to join." Mack replied.

"How'd you get in here? Did that damn Jimmy leave the door unlocked?" Rhett picked up a pint bottle of whiskey off the table that only had a little left in it and he downed it like it was water.

"Your brother and your sister-in-law are both very worried about you. Deacon gave me a key to get in. So how about it do you want to come out with me today?" Mack asked him again.

"Why the hell not? Just let me grab my keys." Rhett pulled himself up off the couch.

"Don't worry about it, I'll drive. I don't think you're in any condition to be driving right now." Mack shook his head violently.

"Alright, alright, just let me change clothes then. If you're supposed to report back to my brother you can leave out the part about the mess in the house. I haven't felt up to cleanin' and Jimmy Boy is very rarely here other than to sleep and shower these days." Rhett headed back to his bedroom.

"I'm not going to tell Deacon anything at all." Mack assured him. "Hey, Rhett," He called out to get the older man's attention.

"What, Mack?" Rhett looked over his shoulder at him.

"Just if you need to talk about anything I'm here and Will's here. You don't have to go to your brother or your sister or even Rayna if you don't want to, but I think you need to talk to someone." Mack told him.

"I know I do. I just can't find the right words to say how I'm feelin'. I know that she wouldn't want me to be like this. She'd kick my ass if she were here and I wouldn't be surprised if she went to my sister or my sister-in-law in a dream and had one of them kick my ass for her. I can't be Paul and I can't work the rest of my life in my brother's bar. I gotta figure somethin' out and I gotta sweat all this whiskey and beer outta my system. A little physical activity will do me some good and it'll help clear my head. I always did my best thinkin' on a ball field." Rhett ran his hand through his hair.

"That's fair enough. Speaking of all the whiskey and beer in your system. You have time to take a shower I can smell it coming off of you." Mack laughed.

"If I told you I took a shower before I passed out on the couch would you believe me? Apparently it's the family curse when we drink too much we may not always show it, but you can sure smell it." Rhett chuckled a little.

"No I wouldn't believe that. Just go shower you, bum." Mack shook his head.

"I'm goin'," Rhett turned to walk to his room again. "Hey, Mack, thanks for bein' such a good friend."

"Anytime, Rhett, anytime," Mack replied.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Sorry about the wait, but don't worry I'm still going strong and I still have a lot in store. If you haven't already signed the petition to #bringbacknashville get on it. Until next time please review.


	65. Chapter 65

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 65

"I'm glad that you two could make it tonight. It looks good that Cole has your support." Lamar greeted Rayna and Deacon.

"You are only this cheerful when you're playing master of the universe, daddy. That scares me, but as long as you're behaving yourself I'm not gonna question that." Rayna kissed his cheek.

"I may have a little something in the works, but it's nothing for you to be worried about." Lamar assured her.

"I'll believe that when I see it." Rayna arched her eyebrow at him. She knew that her father was a changed man, but that didn't mean he couldn't get up to his old tricks.

"Look at that my son-in-law does own something other than denim and flannel." Lamar changed the subject.

"Every now and then I let myself be talked into dressin' up. Don't get too used to it." Deacon chuckled lightly.

"When he says talked into he means that Rayna puts her foot down and he listens for a change." Coleman walked over.

"Don't go around carryin' tales like that, Cole. You'll have people thinkin' I'm scared of my wife or somethin'." Deacon shook his hand.

"Any sane man is scared of his wife, but then again anyone who knows the two of you knows that one of things you do very well is fight with each other." Coleman laughed.

"We've mellowed out a lot with age, Cole. I'll have you know that we spent all summer together on a tour bus and we didn't really fight." Rayna hugged him.

"Thanks, for coming to do this for me. I really appreciate it." Coleman hugged her back.

"You're family, Cole, we are happy to do this for you. God knows I have a lot that I owe you for." She told him.

"Don't mention it. I should get back to Audrey and the kids, but I will see you out there." Coleman replied.

"Babe, do you wanna go make sure that the band is doing ok getting set up?" She turned to Deacon.

"I think you sometimes forget that I ain't your bandleader anymore. But, of course I'll go make sure that are doin' ok." Deacon grinned at her.

Rayna grabbed his hand and pulled him to her. "Darlin', you will always be my bandleader. You're the only one who does it right." The twinkle in her eyes told him that her words had a dual meaning.

Deacon dropped a quick kiss on her lips. "Mhmm, I'll be right back."

"Where's your sister tonight?" Lamar asked after Deacon had gone.

"She should be here any time now, daddy. She loves Cole just as much as I do and she knows that this is important to you. I thought you two have gotten over that falling out that you had." Rayna answered him.

"We have I was simply asking a question. I tried to call her earlier and her phone was off. I have a business matter to discuss with her." Lamar replied.

"Daddy, what are you up to?" She sighed. She wasn't really sure she wanted to know.

"I have a business arrangement in mind that can be mutually beneficial to all of us. Not to mention when I'm gone my daughters and my grandchildren will be set for life." He told her.

"You talked Cole into running so you could get your baseball stadium didn't you?" She started to put the pieces together and it all made sense now.

"He deserves to be mayor and it just so happens to line up with my business interests." He shrugged.

"At least I can count on you to be consistent when it comes to business. You'll always be the same shark no matter how much you change on a personal level." She shook her head.

"Would you know what to do with me if I were any other way?" He asked her.

"No, I wouldn't. I would probably take you to the doctor and make sure that you didn't have a stroke that caused your personality change." She admitted.

"That's what I thought." He nodded his head.

* * *

"There you are. I was starting to think that you stood me up." Maddie greeted JC when he walked into the Mile Marker.

"I would never stand you up, Cricket, you should know that by now." JC kissed her cheek quickly.

"I know that you're not even that late. Tonight is just a writer's round anyway. How'd your thing go earlier?" She asked.

"It went well. Will and I actually won. It came down between us and Luke and Casey. I don't mean to brag, but we kinda destroyed them." He looped his arm around her shoulders.

"That's great, babe." She leaned against his side.

"I know that this is a sore spot for you, but I kinda invited Casey to come tonight. I feel bad I don't think she really knows anyone in town." He closed his eyes tightly and waited for her to explode on him.

"Jimmy, you're too damn sweet for your own good sometimes. I've only had one boyfriend other than you and even I can see that she's clearly into you." She shook her head at him.

"That has been brought to my attention recently and I will take care of it. I just don't have eyes for anyone, but you so I didn't notice before." He admitted. She had surprised him by reacting so well.

"You really have to stop saying all the right things all the time. I'm starting to think that you have no flaws." She teased him.

"I'm plenty flawed I assure you." He pulled out a chair for her.

"I haven't seen anything that counts as a flaw yet." She smiled at him.

He sat down across the table from her. "You just ain't been lookin' hard enough."

"All I've done for the last nine months is look at you. Even when I wasn't supposed to be." She reached across the table and touched his cheek.

"Now you oughta not say things like that cause you just make me want you somethin' terrible." He grinned at her.

"That line ever worked for you before?" She arched her eyebrow at him.

"That wasn't a line, Cricket, that was the truth. There's this whole other side of yourself that you don't see yet. I see it though and it's all I can do sometimes to remind myself that I'm a gentleman and you make the rules." He corrected her.

She looked down at her hands and blushed. "You've been really patient with me and you have no idea how much I appreciate that."

"The intimacy we have far exceeds anythin' that I've ever known with anyone else and I've had sex. I am fine with waitin'. I will tell you that every hour on the hour if that's what it takes to get you to believe it." He promised her.

"This is why I say you're perfect." She replied.

"You're the only one who thinks that, but I'll take it." He smiled and his brown eyes sparkled.

"So, Will, Mack, Scarlett, and Gunnar are coming tonight." She changed the subject.

"Any word on how Mack did with Rhett today?" He asked.

"According to Aunt Bev he called and said that he's gonna be a little late for work tonight. I take that as a good sign." She shrugged her shoulders.

"I know that he's really just been in a funk. Nothin' I've done has been able to pull him outta it. Hopefully Mack had better luck than I've had." He took his cowboy hat off and sat it on the table.

"Looks like you got your wish." Maddie pointed towards the door.

Rhett walked in with Mack. He was laughing at something the younger man had said.

"Well, look who's outta the house." JC bumped knuckles with Rhett.

"Yeah, Deacon had Mack come drag me outta the house. It was good for me and I'm glad that my brother can't mind his own damn business." Rhett retorted. "And I also hear that congratulations are in order. My roommate and my niece are nominated for duet of the year. That's impressive."

"Your roommate was nominated twice in that category and he really cleaned up. That's not as impressive as your brother though. Single of the year, song of the year, musician of the year, album of the year, and male vocalist of the year." Maddie stood up and hugged him.

"I heard. I hate that I missed that. I just couldn't make it this mornin'." Rhett gave her a big hug in return.

"Because he was passed out facedown on the couch, but you know shit happens." Mack supplied helpfully.

"We just discussed this very thing this mornin'. You're another mouth of the south just like Gunnar. You can't know nothin' without the rest of the world knowin' it too. I knew that he was passed out drunk on the couch, but you didn't see me tellin' everyone." JC shook his head.

"I am not the mouth of the south. That title belongs solely to Gunnar. I'd put all my secrets in the paper before I told him anything there's a chance that someone might miss it in the paper." Mack sounded indignant.

"See they talk about me just as badly behind my back as they do to my face." Gunnar told Scarlett.

"If you would keep your mouth shut they wouldn't have anythin' to talk 'bout. Or if you would just start givin' their shit back to them it wouldn't be as fun for them to pick on you. That's a thought." Scarlett rolled her eyes at him.

"You sure you don't want me to kidnap you so you don't have to marry him?" Will asked her. He'd come with those two.

"I'm positive I love the big dummy." Scarlett assured him.

"Well, lookie here, if it isn't some of my favorite people in the world." Beverly came over to the table and greeted them.

"She wants somethin' the last time she was this nice to us she wanted somethin'." Will observed.

"Has one of you done somethin' to him to make him that paranoid." Beverly asked.

"No, if it were Gunnar I would say that one of them did somethin' to him, but Will is just traumatized by the fact that you like to put him to work every chance you get, momma." Scarlett pointed out to her.

"These boys have strong backs and they are very agreeable and easy to deal with. If I call Deacon and ask him for what I need he's just gonna tell me to pay someone to do it and not to call him after midnight for anythin' work related unless it's an emergency." Beverly replied.

"At least we know what she keeps us around for now." Mack laughed.

"She's my sister and she uses me as slave labor. Though at least I get paid for it." Rhett mused.

"Rhett, it's good to see you out of the house. We were gettin' worried 'bout you. Also there's a slot open tonight if you want it." Beverly told him.

"Yeah, I want it. I have somethin' that I've been workin' on." Rhett nodded his head.

"Alright, if ya'll need anythin' you know to just help yourselves. You know how everythin' 'round here works. I'll be back in the office if anythin' comes up that you can't handle." Beverly said before she walked away.

Casey walked in a few minutes later and JC waved her over to the table. "Hey, Casey, glad you could make it." He smiled at her.

"I wasn't gonna miss this for anythin' in the world." Casey smiled back.

"Let me make a few introductions. Will you already know. That's Mack, Gunnar, Scarlett, Maddie, and Rhett." JC pointed at each person as he spoke.

"It's nice to meet ya'll." Casey waved at them.

"Have a seat we are mostly a friendly bunch except for Mack he can be kinda cranky sometimes." Gunnar joked. He had to get his shots in where he could.

"Obviously Gunnar is the clown of the group and we take him with a grain of salt." Will rolled his eyes.

"You sure JC isn't the clown? I spent many hours alone in a studio with him." Casey asked.

"He's a clown he's just not the group clown." Scarlett added.

Maddie had put up a huge effort not to be overtly hostile to the other girl. "That's because you're marrying the clown."

"Don't remind me what he's like. I know what he's like and I still wanna spend the rest of my life with him anyway. I don't wanna think 'bout what that says 'bout me." Scarlett nudged her cousin gently with her elbow.

One of the sound techs walked over to the table. "Rhett, the first slot is open is you wanna take it and get us started tonight."

"Yeah, that sounds great. I'll do that right now." Rhett replied. He looked at JC. "Jimmy, let me borrow your guitar. I didn't drive myself tonight so I wasn't prepared for this."

"Of course, help yourself, man. I keep one in back here just in case." JC replied.

Rhett went and grabbed the guitar and took the stage. "Hey, ya'll, I'm Rhett Claybourne and this is a new one I wrote." He started picking a tune on his guitar softly. _"Why did she have to go so young I just don't know why things happen half the time without reason without rhyme. Lovely sweet young woman. Daughter wife and mother. Makes no sense to me. I just have to believe."_

All eyes in the room were on him now.

" _She flew up to heaven on the wings of angels by the clouds and stars and passed where no one sees. And she walks with Jesus and her loved ones waitin' and I know she's smilin' sayin' don't worry 'bout me."_ He'd been working on this song since his mother died. After talking with Mack earlier he knew he needed to get his feelings out some way. This was easier than him having to talk about them.

" _Loved ones she left behind just tryin' to survive and understand the why feelin' so lost inside. Anger shot straight at God then askin' for his love. Empty with disbelief just hopin' that maybe. She flew up to heaven on the wings of angels by the clouds and stars and passed where no one sees. And she walks with Jesus and her loved ones waitin' and I know she's smilin' sayin' don't worry 'bout me."_ He focused on his hands as he played the guitar. He was afraid if he made eye contact with anyone he would lose it.

" _It's hard to say goodbye her picture in my mind. Will always be of times I'll cherish and I won't cry 'cause. She flew up to heaven on the wings of angels by the clouds and stars and passed where no one sees. And she walks with Jesus and her loved ones waitin' and I know she's smilin' sayin' don't worry 'bout me. Don't worry 'bout me."_ By the time he finished the song his voice was thick with emotion.

He blinked his eyes to clear his vision and he cleared his throat. "Thank ya'll, for lettin' me do that for ya." He got down off the stage as quickly as he could and headed to the back.

"That was beautiful and brave, Rhett. It took a lot to get up there and do that." Beverly stopped him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks, I don't really talk 'bout my feelings so that was easier. I could express what I was feelin', but I didn't have to say it." Rhett told her.

"You're a lot like Deacon that way. You see how that's worked out for him." Beverly pointed out.

"Yeah, I don't know if that's really what I want though or if I even know what I want for that matter." Rhett admitted.

"You have time, Rhett, don't stress yourself out. Baby steps you've gotta learn to adjust to your new normal. Don't jump into any major decisions right now." She advised him.

"You sound like a shrink you know that?" He asked her.

"That would probably be because I've had a couple nervous breakdowns in my lifetime." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Bev, I didn't know. If I had I wouldn't have said that." He stammered over his words.

"Don't worry 'bout it. I ain't made of glass one little comment ain't gonna make me break." She kissed his cheek.

* * *

"Mmm, Deacon, stop I'm tryin' to read my emails." Rayna moaned softly when she felt her husband's lips on her neck. She laying on her side in bed staring at her phone.

"That's just too damn bad, cause I'm tryin' to get lucky." Deacon kissed her neck again and slipped his hand under her shirt.

She didn't even bother to put up a fight. His touch always ignited a fire in her and he was the only person who could put it out. She discarded her phone on the nightstand. She turned around in his arms and kissed him. "I think that can be arranged for sure."

They laid there in each other's arms making out for a good ten minutes before her phone rang.

"Ignore it, babe." He pulled away for a moment.

"That's the plan." She kissed him again and let her phone go to voice mail.

By the time his lips migrated to her neck her phone rang for the third time.

She groaned and reached for it. "This better be an emergency." She didn't bother to look at Deacon as she listened to what her caller had to say she knew that he would look just like a kicked puppy dog. "Ok, I'll be right there." She said finally before she hung up. "Babe, I'm sorry to do this to you, but that was Marcus and I gotta go meet him at the studio. I don't know how long I'm gonna be."

"That's fine go do what you have to. I'll be here waitin' when you get back." He untangled himself from her.

She got out of bed and threw some clothes on. "I'll see you when I get back." She leaned down and pecked his lips.

"See you then, babe." He replied.

Rayna didn't make it home until the next morning after the girls had gone to school. She found Deacon in the kitchen feeding the boys in their highchairs. "Where's Maddie's Jeep? I didn't see it in the driveway when I pulled in."

"That's because she drove herself and Daphne to school to help pick up some of the slack this mornin'." Deacon poured her a cup of coffee and handed it to her. "Here it looks like you could use this."

"I need somethin' way stronger than this. I'm really tempted to have you drop me off at Tootsie's on your way to the office and then take a cab there and nap on my couch." She sipped her coffee.

"Yeah, that's not happenin'. I think you need to go upstairs and get yourself in that bed for a little while and I will take the boys outside or somethin'." He suggested.

"Babe, I would love to, but I have a marathon day today. I have to call and set up a photo shoot for Maddie and Daphne and I have studio time scheduled this afternoon. Plus, I would actually like to spend some time with my baby boys in the near future. Oh, and in the middle of all of this Tandy and I have a meeting with daddy. He's taking us to lunch at the country club." She replied.

"Ray, we have a studio right here that you can use any time that you want to. You don't have to schedule time and then worry that you won't be able to keep it. That was part of the reason we had it put in that and I don't always sleep so it's nice to have somethin' to do at four in the mornin'." He pointed out to her.

"The in home studio is more yours and the girls' plaything. As much as I love bein' your wife and their momma I need some away time sometimes. I get that in the studio. Of course I also need to find a producer. I've got the writing partner covered." She smiled at him.

"I can understand that. Is that your way of askin' me to be your producer?" He arched his eyebrow.

"No, you've gotten far too big and important to produce little ol' me. You're nominated for all those CMA awards." She teased him.

"You know that's not my style. I can't imagine not bein' on that stage with the one I got there with." He gave her a lopsided grin.

She walked around the counter and kissed him. "I love you."

"I love you too." He mumbled against her lips.

* * *

"Daddy, if you could get to the point of why you wanted to see us that would be great." Tandy took a healthy swallow from her wine glass.

"It's not like we're busy running a record label or anything." Rayna added.

"Can't a father just sit down and share a meal with his two daughters?" Lamar asked them.

"When that father is you no he can't." Tandy retorted.

"Ok, so I have a business proposition for you two. When Coleman is elected mayor we are going to move forward with the plan I've had to build a baseball stadium. It's going to bring a lot of revenue to the city and part of the way it's gonna do that is the way we are going to fund it. We live in music city I thought I would get a few of the bigger named artists to put on shows there until it's paid off and go from there." Lamar laid out his plans for them.

"What you're really saying is you want to use Highway Sixty-five artists to fund your stadium and you planned on this before you bothered to ask me if I was ok with it or not. I'd ask if I had that right, but I'm sure that I do." Rayna seethed.

"Rayna, don't let your anger get the better of you this is a good deal for both of us. It's a few concerts here and there as your schedule permits. You have a stable full of very talented very young artists. Where else are they going to get the opportunity to play sold out stadiums without being an opening act for another artist?" Lamar reasoned with her.

Rayna looked over at her sister.

"Babe, I hate to say it, but it's a really great idea that makes sound business sense. I would make sure that any contract between Highway Sixty-five and Wyatt Industries was ironclad. It's good business for us." Tandy advised her.

"Ok, daddy, so you've got your stadium what are you going to do about a team?" Rayna asked him.

"You let me worry about that. I'm going to build my own farm team. I have people in my organization scouting current and former college players just to feel them out. We are going to raise our own team with players that for whatever reason never got their shot. We would be independent of all the other teams and we would have the option to trade our players to whatever team we wanted to. We wouldn't be tied down to any particular organization." Lamar explained simply.

"You've just thought of everything haven't you? This idea has come a long way since I worked for you." Tandy snorted.

"You know I need a trustworthy and capable CEO to run the front office. The job is yours if you want it." Lamar offered.

"Thanks, but no thanks, I'll pass. I'm happy where I am." Tandy turned him down.

"I have the misfortune to have not only one, but two extremely headstrong daughters. I don't know where the two of you get that from. I can respect that though. I hurt you and I shouldn't have you were the one that stuck by me when I couldn't see eye to eye with your sister." Lamar told her and then he turned to Rayna. "And you are a force of nature just like your momma was. You've never let me or anyone else stand in your way. I just hope now that you're a parent you can understand where I was coming from."

"Daddy, you never understood me or tried to for that matter. It was your way or the highway. As much as I don't want to admit to it I got your ambition and that's why we were never gonna get along. That being said in your position I would probably do the same thing minus the you abide by my rules or you get out part. Hell, Maddie is the age I was when you threw me out. I would kill her if she even thought about pulling half the stuff I pulled. You threw me out for the things you knew about that was far outweighed by the things you didn't know about." Rayna sipped her bourbon.

"She has something you didn't have though she has you. And from where I stand you're doing everything that you can to make her dreams come true. I didn't do that for you in the way I should have. What do you say?" Lamar asked.

"Rayna, he's being charming. When that happens you should be very afraid." Tandy advised her.

"Tandy, I'm not worried about it. If he tries to screw me on this he's gonna find out how much like him I really am." Rayna told her and she stuck out her hand to her father. "I say you should talk to my CFO about this."

Lamar shook her hand. "That's my girl." He had a big smile plastered on his face.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. A little something to go with the good news that we got today. #BringBackNashville We are almost there we just have to keep pushing. Anyway things are starting to get interesting here. Not to worry I have a lot more in store and this story is far from over. Until next time please review.


	66. Chapter 66

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 66

Rayna walked into the bedroom from the bathroom wearing her pajamas. She'd just gotten out of the shower and gone through her nightly routine. She sat down on the edge of the bed with a slight groan. "God, I so glad to see this bed before dawn."

Marcus had been keeping her pretty busy in the studio lately and she'd been keeping really long hours.

Deacon got up on his knees and started rubbing her shoulders. "You just relax and let me take care of you tonight."

"Mmm, babe, you have no idea how good that feels." She moaned.

"You're so tense, baby, we should do somethin' to relive that stress." He started kissing her neck while he rubbed her shoulders.

"Honey, that's a great idea and I can appreciate the fact that for us it's been a really long time since we've had sex, but I'm just too tired." She was already half asleep as it was.

"That's fine, babe, you're tired I understand completely." He kept rubbing her shoulders. He hoped that his voice didn't betray his disappointment.

"Normally that wouldn't stop me trust me I want you just as badly as you want me right now. At this point I can't promise you that I won't fall asleep on you in the middle of sex. And that is the last thing that I wanna do to you. I don't wanna be so tired that I can't enjoy it." She reached up and put one of her hands on top of his. He had been so patient and understanding with her lately that she felt a little like she was taking advantage of him.

"Right now more than anythin' you need sleep. You need to sleep for as long as you want. Just turn your phone off and take care of you for a change." He kissed her cheek.

"As much as I would love to do that I can't. I'm a wife, a momma, a label head, and an artist. That doesn't leave a whole hell of a lot of time for me to just relax and be me." She sighed when her phone chirped. "See what I mean?"

"Ignore it, Ray, Marcus is a big boy. He doesn't need you to hold his hand every second of the day. He even knows how to record without you. If you wanna take a day off you have Buck, Tandy, and me to pick up the slack for you. I'm worried that if you don't take a break soon you're gonna run yourself into the ground." He picked up her phone and turned it off before she could argue.

"Deacon, babe, I should probably answer that." She whined. She didn't really want to answer the phone, but she knew she should.

"Ray, he has Jeff if he needs anythin'. He doesn't get to monopolize your time just because everyone else has let him do it in the past. Like you said you have other roles to fill and he's just gonna have to deal with that. You're leavin' this thing off all night and you're at least takin' a half day to yourself tomorrow." He laid down the law.

"Ok, I can do that. I can sleep in and I may actually be able to finally get into the studio. You're way too good to me sometimes, babe." She turned around and kissed him.

"My motives ain't exactly pure. I need you rested up so I can get into your panties." He mumbled against her lips.

"That is totally acceptable to me." She smiled.

"I'm glad that my plan meets with your approval." He smirked.

"Mom is in the studio again this morning?" Daphne asked when she sat down for breakfast.

"No, momma is upstairs sleepin'. I'm makin' her get some rest. I'm currently holdin' her phone hostage. The boys and I are gonna take ya'll to school this mornin' if that's alright with you." Deacon replied.

"I'm not going to argue with that. We are still having studio time today right?" Maddie asked him.

"I wouldn't tell you two that I was takin' you into the studio and then not do it. I for one want to get this album finished. I would like to get both these albums finished as a matter of fact. We have somethin' that the three of us need to discuss while I'm thinkin' 'bout it." He added.

"What is it?" Daphne inquired.

"Well, you know how at the CMAs they give out a lifetime achievement award?" He asked in reply.

"Yeah, what about it?" Maddie was confused.

"This year they are givin' that award to your momma. And they thought it would be nice if you two would present it to her." He smiled.

"No way! Maddie and I both get to do it?" Daphne's face lit up.

"Dad, that is so awesome." Maddie chimed in.

"Here's the thing we want to keep this a surprise, so no matter what you can't tell momma 'bout this. It stays between the three of us. Deal?" He looked at them both intently.

"Deal," Both girls agreed.

"Alright, I will get with you two and let you know what's goin' on with that when I know more. Uncle Buck and Aunt Tandy only tell me so much too. It's like they don't trust me not to tell your momma or somethin'." He chuckled.

"Dad, you tell mom everything even the things that you don't need to tell her." Maddie told him.

"She has a point, Deacon, you two are like best friends you know all of each other's secrets." Daphne chirped.

"That's how it's supposed to be when you get married. I hope that ya'll get the chance to marry your best friend too. But not for a very long time I can't take that right now." He ran his hands over his face. Those two could take him off topic in places that he didn't want to go.

"I think I already have that." Maddie smiled thinking about JC.

"Ok, don't your daddy's poor heart can't take that." He winced.

"Deacon, you know that we aren't gonna be your little girls forever don't you?" Daphne giggled.

"That is false, you two are always gonna be my little girls no matter how old you get, Squirt." He told her. "Who wants to leave early and grab breakfast? But we can't tell momma that we didn't wake her up and invite her. I want daddy time with all four of my babies at once."

"I'll help get the boys in the truck." Maddie volunteered.

"I'll get their diaper bags." Daphne did her part.

"That sounds like a plan let's go." Deacon picked Jaymes up. "Maddie, if you could get the Outlaw that would be great."

"I've got him, dad." Maddie scooped her brother up in her arms and blew raspberries on his belly. He laughed and cooed at her.

* * *

"Well, look who's here. Did you have a good sleep?" Deacon walked over and wrapped his arms around Rayna. He was in the mixing booth at the studio. He was working with Avery on his album.

"I did, thank you for insisting that I take a break. I slept all night and then I woke up around nine. I went and sat on the couch with my cup of coffee and I fell back asleep watching tv. When I woke up again it was around noon and I thought I may as well come in. If you're not too busy with Avery right now I was hoping that we could start working on my album." Rayna kissed him and rested her forehead against his.

"That's great, babe, I'm glad you were finally able to get some rest. Avery will be fine on his own for a little while. I just mostly stand here and act like I know what I'm doin'. Juliette and Emily actually took the boys and they are havin' a play date with Cadence. We have time, babe. I'd love to get to work on your album. And the girls are comin' in after school to lay some tracks down." He rubbed his nose against hers.

"That was sweet of her. That sounds great, babe, let me go get set up. I hope you brought your guitar." She replied.

"You know me better than that. I bring my guitar with me everywhere." He grinned at her.

"Well, go get it and meet me in the studio." She smacked his ass playfully.

"Woman, don't you start somethin' with me. You know how badly I'm wantin' you." He whispered in her ear.

"Oh, sugar, it can't be as badly as I'm wantin' you." She whispered back.

He laughed at her and headed out to get his guitar.

" _I used to believe that things would change, but here we go again. Riding the spinning carousel this circle never ends. This kitchen table has seen it all before. These walls are tired of standing can't hold us anymore."_ Rayna sang into the mic. She had her hand on the one headphone that covered her ear so she could hear the music.

" _One Mississippi I close my eyes. Two Mississippi I'm beggin' you and we can still survive. Three Mississippi no looking back gone for good and I know that I won't change my mind oh woah yeah. Three Mississippi is where I'm at tonight."_ She closed her eyes. This was a song she had dug deep for. It was about her first breakup with Deacon. She wanted this album to be her answer to About A Girl.

" _We're all outta second chances and all outta one more times. There's not a word we've said nothing we have not tried. My bones are aching from the weight I'm holding down. I've took all that I'm taking. I'm breaking, breaking down."_

" _One Mississippi I close my eyes. Two Mississippi I'm beggin' you and we can still survive. Three Mississippi no looking back gone for good and I know that I won't change my mind oh woah yeah. Three Mississippi is where I'm at tonight."_ She made eye contact with Deacon and winked at him.

Deacon waved and blew her a kiss.

" _Hold my breath close my eyes. Goodbye. Woah, woah. One Mississippi I close my eyes. Two Mississippi I'm beggin' you and we can still survive. Three Mississippi no looking back gone for good and I know that I won't change my mind. No I won't change my mind. Three Mississippi is where I'm at tonight. Three Mississippi. Three Mississippi."_ She finished the song strong.

"That sounded great, babe. Come in here and take a listen to it. I know how picky you can be." He said over the intercom.

"Play it back for me." She walked in and wrapped her arm around his waist.

He hit a button and the song played over the speakers. "Does this meet with your approval?"

"You don't think it's too much do you?" She asked him.

"No, I think it captures your feelings in that moment. We agreed that you were gonna do some deeper songs on this album than you did on the last one. It's a good song. As your producer I would leave it the way it is. And as the man who has made music with you for goin' on thirty years this is some of your best work." He assured her.

"I trust your judgment. If you think it's good we will leave it the way it is." She rested her head on his shoulder.

"It's really good, baby. You know I wouldn't say that unless it were true." He replied.

"I just feel like I really have to prove myself with this album. I have to show that I'm more than just a label head that I still have it as an artist. I need to let people know that I haven't lost a step just because I got remarried and had twins. And that the last album wasn't a fluke just because I was involved with Luke." She stressed.

"Ray, you are the undisputed Queen of Country and I don't see you losin' that title any time soon. Everythin' you are today you've earned yourself. Don't let anyone make you feel any different." He took her hands in his.

"I know that, babe, I really do, but it's different for me because I'm a woman. I have to prove that I can do it all and have it all. It's absolutely maddening." She sighed and buried her face in his chest.

"I'm right here for you every step of the way. I think this summer more than proved that you can do it all and have it all. You have absolutely been runnin' yourself ragged lately. A person can only go at that pace for so long before it takes a toll on 'em. I don't wanna see you hit a brick wall and burn out from you tryin' to produce Marcus and keep him happy. If you have to tell him hit the road then so be it. Highway Sixty-five was doin' fine before he came along and we will be just fine after him. If you'd asked me my opinion before you signed him, I would have told you he was more trouble than he was worth." He stared deeply into her eyes.

"Babe, I just want this label to be successful and not seen as a vanity label. I started this label over a year ago when I bought out of Edgehill and people are still referring to this as a vanity label. As opposed to Luke who started his label just a few months ago and no one is sayin' that about him. There is a double standard when it comes to men and women in this industry. You know it and I know it. I got my daddy's ambition and I can't settle for second best." She stared back into his eyes.

"I think that the fact that a Highway Sixty-five artist is nominated in every major CMA Awards category says that it isn't a vanity label, but you do what you have to and know that I'm right beside you no matter what." He promised her.

"You are better to me than I deserve sometimes. I don't know what I would do without you." She pecked his lips.

"If you wanna repay the favor you could get that sexy little ass of yours back in the booth. I'd like to have two songs on track for you before I have to deal with my two mini divas." He mumbled against her lips.

"I think we can handle that." She bit her lip.

"I think so too. And I wanna get out of here at a reasonable time. I was thinkin' maybe we could put the boys to bed early tonight and we could have some momma and daddy alone time." He suggested.

"That sounds perfect I can squeeze you into my busy schedule." She smirked at him.

"You are both soundin' real good in there today, I'm really proud of you." Deacon told Maddie and Daphne after their recording session.

"Thanks, dad," Maddie hugged her father.

"Yeah, thanks, Deacon." Daphne hugged him too.

"What do you two say we go get your momma and then get outta here for the day?" He asked.

"That sounds like a really good idea." Maddie agreed with him.

"I think we can even manage to go grab some dinner before we pick the boys up." He put an arm around each other their shoulders.

"That would be awesome." Daphne leaned against his side.

He led them to the studio where Rayna was working. Of course after she'd gotten all the tracks down that she'd been working on Marcus had called her to come work with him.

"What are ya'll up to?" Rayna smiled at them.

"We just got finished recordin' and we came to see if you're ready to head out." Deacon told her.

"I wish." Rayna rolled her eyes. "Ya'll should just go on home without me and I'll be there as soon as I can."

"Alright, we will go get the boys and grab some dinner. I'll try to have them down before you get home." He replied. His patience with the Marcus situation was starting to wear thin, but he'd promised her that he'd have her back no matter what and he couldn't take that back now.

"Hopefully I won't be here much longer. I've been in here for hours as it is and he can't get this one song down. No matter what it never sounds right to him." Rayna sighed.

"It's ok, babe, I'll see you at home." He kissed her.

"I love you." She smiled at him.

"I love you too." He gave her a half smile back.

"I love you girls I'll see ya'll at home." Rayna blew a kiss to each of her daughters.

"Love you too, mom." Maddie and Daphne replied in unison.

* * *

"Marcus, it's time to come in here and give it a rest." Rayna hit the intercom button an hour later.

Marcus walked into the room. "Rayna, I just don't understand it. I can't get this song down. We have been working on it all day."

"I know and time is money, but we are gonna try a little something different. Come on let's go take a walk." She told him.

"I'm down." He agreed.

She walked with him down to the Mile Marker and took a seat at the bar. "Sometimes you've just gotta walk away from what you're doing and decompress. Deacon and I used to do this all the time when we were having a tough recording session."

"Really?" He asked.

"Yeah, really, we recorded many a hit song half drunk." She confirmed.

Rhett walked down from the other end of the bar. "What can I get for you?"

"You can get me a Deacon special." She told him. "That bottle right there." She pointed out the bottle of whiskey to him when she saw the confusion on his face. "Make it a double."

"What about you?" Rhett asked Marcus.

"I'll take the same." Marcus replied.

"Where are my manners? Marcus, this is my brother-in-law Rhett. Rhett, this is Highway Sixty-five's newest artist Marcus Keen." Rayna introduced the pair.

"I've heard all 'bout Marcus. Nice to meet you." Rhett offered the other man his hand.

"Nice to meet you too." Marcus shook his hand.

Rhett got their drinks and sat them on the bar. He held out his hand when Rayna went to hand him money. "You know that's free of charge. My brother would kick my ass if even thought 'bout takin' that from you."

"Point taken." She put the money away.

Rayna and Marcus stayed at the bar for a couple of hours.

"I'm ready to go back in the studio and try that song again." Marcus announced rather loudly.

"Ok, ok, we can do that. Just let me text Deacon and tell him that I'm gonna be late." Rayna signaled Rhett over.

"What can I do for ya?" Rhett asked cheerfully.

"You can give me a bottle to take back to the studio and if you don't mind very much you can give me a ride home, because I am in no condition to drive myself." She smiled at him.

"After everythin' you and Deacon' have done for me that's the least I can do. I'll go get that bottle of whiskey for you." Rhett replied.

She tapped out a quick text to Deacon and stuffed her phone back in her pocket. "Alright, as soon as he brings me that bottle we will be ready to go."

* * *

Deacon was laid out across the bed in nothing, but a tight pair of boxer briefs. He had the lights in the bedroom dimmed and lit candles all over. A trail of rose petals led to the bathroom where he had a bubble bath waiting. He had gone all out for Rayna because she'd been working so hard lately and he wanted a chance to spoil her.

He flipped over to grab his phone off his nightstand when it chimed. He opened his text message and he sighed when he read it. _I'm going to be later than I thought. Thank you for being so patient and understanding with me lately. Give the boys a kiss for me. Love you._

He typed out a reply, but then he erased it because it was just his frustration talking. Finally, he sent her. _Will do, take your time I love you too._

For a moment he contemplated blowing out the candles and cleaning up the bedroom. Instead he decided to wait her out. It was possible that she wouldn't be that late. That turned out to be wishful thinking on his part. He fell asleep waiting for her to get home. He only woke up when he heard Elvis downstairs barking as loud as he could.

He jumped up out of bed and threw a pair of pajama pants on before he went downstairs. "Elvis, hush, it's ok, boy, I'm up." He petted the dog's head and went to the front door where the source of Elvis' discontent was coming from. He wanted to get him quiet before he woke the boys up.

Deacon opened the door to find Rhett on the other side holding Rayna up while he tried to get the key in the lock. "Here, Rhett, I've got her. Thanks for bringin' her home." He put his arm around Rayna's waist to steady her.

"No problem, she was hittin' it pretty hard at the bar tonight and then she took a bottle of whiskey back to the studio with her. I stopped by to see her after I closed up and her and Marcus were both pretty wasted and workin' on a song. I figured I better get her on home." Rhett reported.

"I really appreciate it. Go home and get some sleep. I've got her from here." Deacon assured him.

"If you give me her keys I'll wake Jimmy up and we will get her car home so it doesn't sit on the parkin' lot all night." Rhett offered.

"You don't have to do that, but you'd be doin' your big brother a favor if you did." Deacon gave him Rayna's keys.

"We are family this is what we do for each other. I'll use my key to let myself in and I'll leave her keys on the counter." Rhett took her keys and put them in his pocket.

"Alright, just lock up when you leave. I gotta get this one up to bed." Deacon replied.

"Will do," Rhett threw him a salute before he left.

"Thanks, Rhett." Rayna called after him.

"Come on, drunk, let's get you to bed." Deacon was torn between being slightly amused and being pissed off.

"I am not that drunk." She slurred.

"You are that drunk." He replied. He groaned when he heard one of the boys cry. "Ok, I'm gonna sit you on this couch. I will be right back."

He went upstairs to check on the boys. As it turned out Jaymes was only in need of a diaper change and he went right back to sleep. He took the time to clean up the bedroom and blow out all the candles he had lit. He'd given up on having sex tonight. He was right to go with his instincts on that one. When he made it back downstairs Rayna was passed out asleep on the couch.

He carried her up to bed and took her jeans off before he tucked her in. He got into bed beside her and turned on his side with his back to her. When he woke again sunlight was streaming in through the windows and he felt a hand running over his chest and abs.

"Mornin', babe." Rayna purred in his ear and slipped her hand down the front of his pajama pants.

Deacon consulted the bedside clock. "Mornin', Ray. As much as I love where this is goin' I gotta get the girls up and movin' and those boys will be up any minute." He took her hand out his pants and got out of bed. He went to Maddie's room and then Daphne's. Once he was sure both the girls were awake he made his way down to the kitchen.

Rayna had the boys in their highchairs and was feeding them. "There's daddy." She cooed at them.

"Dada," Little Deacon squealed.

"Da!" Jaymes wouldn't be outdone by his brother.

"Mornin', dudes." He kissed both the boys on the head. He kissed Rayna's cheek when she leaned in for a kiss.

"Deacon, are you mad at me or somethin'?" She asked him.

"I don't wanna get into right now, Ray. Those girls will be down here any second. You were supposed to be home last night and you weren't. Then when you did come home you were drunk. I can't think of a thing that I would have to be mad 'bout." He snapped at her.

"Babe, come on, I'm sorry about last night. I just finally got on a roll with Marcus and I didn't wanna lose momentum. The sooner I get this album done the sooner things can get back to normal." She reasoned with him.

"Yeah, whatever, I was just really lookin' forward to last night. It's been a long time, Ray." He pointed out.

Rayna was going to reply, but Maddie and Daphne came into the kitchen. "Good morning, girls." She kissed them both.

"It's a cereal morning we are runnin' a little behind and I don't want us to be late." He poured them both a bowl of cereal.

"Is it ok if mom drives us to school today?" Daphne asked.

"You have to ask your momma that." He replied.

"I would love to take you to school today. I feel like I hardly get to spend time with my two favorite girls anymore." Rayna smiled at them brightly.

"Can JC come over after school today? We have some songs that we want to work on." Maddie asked.

"That's fine with me. You know the rules he's not allowed upstairs if we aren't home." Deacon reminded her.

"Goodness you two ate fast this morning." Rayna told the boys.

"I'm gonna take these two to get cleaned up and we are gonna head into the office." He took both the boys out of their highchairs and headed upstairs without waiting for a reply.

"Sounds good," Rayna muttered after him.

"Are you two fighting or something?" Maddie asked.

"Or something." Rayna shook her head and then she smiled. "You two eat so we can get to school on time."

* * *

When Rayna made it into work she found a dozen roses waiting for her on her desk. She picked up the card and read it. _Ray, I'm sorry that I was such an ass this morning. You do what you've gotta do and I'm behind you. Love, Deacon._

She smiled and then headed for his office.

Deacon sat behind his desk doing something on the computer. "Hey, babe, did you like the flowers?"

Rayna didn't reply verbally. She pushed his chair back from his desk and sat in his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a passionate kiss on his lips. "I loved them and I love you. I know that I've been absent lately and you've picked up the slack. I'm so grateful to have you."

"I love you too, babe. I'm your partner it's what I'm supposed to do. You never have to thank me for that." He replied before he kissed her again.

"If those boys weren't right here I would show you just how grateful I am." She whispered seductively.

"Don't make promises you can't keep. I'll tell you what once I get my hands on you I'm gonna turn you every which way, but loose." He ground his bulge against her ass.

"Oh, baby, that's one promise that I damn sure intend to keep." She rubbed against him.

"Right now you better stop before you start somethin'." He warned her.

"Maybe I don't wanna stop." She licked the shell of his ear.

"Maybe you better or I'm gonna forget that those boys are in here and bend you over this desk." His voice had taken on a husky tone.

"Deacon!" She threw her head back and laughed.

"Well, it's true. This is worse than that eight-week sex ban after my surgery. Because now we can, but we just can't seem to link up." He rested his forehead against hers.

"I know and I promise soon. Tonight is lookin' pretty good for you." She rubbed his chest over his shirt.

"You just need to tell Marcus sorry, but if I don't attend to my husband's needs there's every chance in the world that he will kill you with his bare hands. I don't think that's too extreme. That guy is the world's biggest cock block." He groaned.

"Deacon John, you can't say things like that in front of the boys. They are starting to form words now and I really don't want my almost seven month old sons saying that, because daddy doesn't know how to edit himself." She scolded him.

"Well, I can't help it that it happens to be true." He shrugged his shoulders.

"True or not watch your filthy mouth in front of our offspring." She pecked his lips showing him that there was no real heat behind her words.

"I will do the best I can, but I make no promises." He smirked.

"Well as long as you promise to do your best I can't ask for anything more than that. That would just be totally unfair of me." She ran her hand up and down his chest.

"If you don't stop that I'm gonna ban you from my office. I'm tryin' to work so I'm not stuck here late." He teased her.

"I guess I'm just gonna have to let you get to work then. I wouldn't want you to be here all night and miss out on getting me a piece of you." She planted a lingering kiss on his lips before she walked out of his office with a little extra sway to her hips.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. And here's to season five of Nashville. #NashvilleIsBack. I thought that I would give Rayna and Deacon just a little conflict for a change and that's what Marcus is doing in here. Not to worry though our favorite couple is in no danger of splitting up. A little later in the story I'm toying with the idea of bringing Frankie and Cash in so I can fix the mess the old writers made of that storyline. I don't know if I'm going to do that yet or not, but if I do I promise that it will play out differently. Until next time please review.


	67. Chapter 67

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 67

Deacon sat on the couch hunched over his computer. He was doing something work related for Bucky. He had his glasses perched on his nose. He had his headphones in his ears. He was right in the middle of another night without Rayna coming home. They had a tenuous truce at best in place at the moment. They were more in the middle of a cold war than anything.

He looked up from the computer for a moment and he saw Daphne waving trying to get his attention. She held Jaymes on her hip. The baby was screaming at the top of his lungs.

He took the headphones out of his ears. "Hey, Squirt, what's goin' on? Is he ok?"

"I've been trying to get your attention for the last five minutes. I think something is really wrong with Jayme. He won't stop crying. Nothing I normally do has worked. I tried a bottle, I burped him, I changed him, and I sang to him." She explained to him worriedly.

"Ok, let me see him." He got up and took him into his arms. "Hi, Rebel, you givin' your sissy a hard time?" As soon as he came into contact with Jaymes' skin he knew what the problem was. "Oh, buddy, you're burnin' up. You're really, really hot." He felt Jaymes' forehead and then he felt Daphne's. "You're so hot your sissy feels cold." He kissed his head. "Squirt, go get me the baby thermometer please." He requested.

"Sure, I've got it." She scampered off.

"You're ok, Reb, daddy's got ya." He rocked him to soothe him. The sound of his son's pitiful wails damn near broke his heart.

Daphne returned a moment later with the thermometer. "Here you go, Deacon."

"Thanks, Squirt." He stuck the thermometer in Jaymes' ear and he only cried louder. He took it out when it beeped and his eyes went wide. "Ok, we are goin' to the ER. I know just enough to know that a hundred and three fever isn't normal for you."

"Is he gonna be ok?" She asked concerned.

"He's gonna be just fine I'll take him to the ER and the doctor will fix him up good as new." He reassured her and himself. He picked up his phone and dialed Rayna's number. He wasn't surprised at all when he got her voicemail. "Ray, it's me you really need to call me back when you get this. It's important or I wouldn't have called." He hung up. "Are Maddie and Jimmy still in the music room?"

"They were the last time I checked." She replied.

Deacon rushed into the music room. "Maddie!"

Maddie and JC were on the couch making out. They jumped away from each other like they had been burned.

"Dad!" Maddie exclaimed.

JC didn't say anything he just blushed bright red.

"I don't have time to address this right now. I have to go. I'm takin' Jayme to the hospital. You're in charge of Daphne and Deac. I want you to call your momma every five minutes until she picks her phone up. If she answers for you just tell her to meet me at Vanderbilt." Deacon instructed in one breath.

"I've got them, dad, just go. I promise that I won't let anything happen to them." Maddie swore.

"I should probably go." JC cleared his throat.

"No, you stay. I would feel better with you here. Just no suckin' face while I'm gone." Deacon warned them. He pocked his wallet and cell phone and grabbed the keys to his truck. He buckled Jaymes into his car seat and headed off to the hospital.

He tried to call Rayna three more times on the way there. He even called the recording studio and they told him she was busy and couldn't be disturbed. He got to the hospital and carried the baby in, in his carrier.

"Hi, my name is Deacon Claybourne and this is my son Jaymes. He's almost seven months old and he's runnin' a fever of a hundred and three. Uh, when I put the thermometer in his ear to take his temperature he screamed like I was beatin' him or somethin'." Deacon told the on duty nurse behind the registration desk.

"Ok, Mr. Claybourne, you just need to fill out some paperwork and we will get to your son as soon as possible." The nurse handed him a clipboard.

He took a seat in the waiting area and filled out all the paperwork. He took Jaymes' insurance card out of his wallet and took it up to the front desk once he was finished. "Here you go. Now what?"

"Just have a seat we will call you when we are ready for you and you'll get your insurance card back then." The nurse took the clipboard from him.

He carried Jaymes back over to the waiting area, took him out of his carrier, and held him close. "It's all gonna be ok, Reb. Daddy is gonna make sure that you get all better." He kissed his son's head gently. If anything he felt hotter than he had before.

Over the next hour Deacon tried repeatedly to call Rayna only to continue to get no answer.

A doctor happened to be passing by and stopped by the desk to talk to the nurse. "Is that who I think it is sitting in the waiting room?" He asked.

"I guess that would depend on who you think it is." The nurse replied.

"I'm pretty sure that's Freakin' Deacon Claybourne. He's only the best guitarist in the history of ever. We don't keep high profile patients waiting. Give me his paperwork I'll take care of it myself." The doctor held his hand out for the information he'd requested. Once he had it he walked over to where Deacon sat. "Mr. Claybourne, I'm Dr. Steven Black, I'm sorry about the long wait. Why don't you tell me what's going on?"

"This is my son Jaymes. He's runnin' a really high fever and I think his little ears are botherin' him. I took his temperature usin' the ear thermometer and he just screamed his little head off." Deacon told the doctor.

"If you'll just come with me we will get him checked out and see what's goin' on." Dr. Black replied.

"Dr. Walker is his normal doctor if you wanted to call him or whatever. I'm not real sure how any of this works." Deacon got to his feet and followed behind the doctor.

"If you just want to strip him down to his diaper and lay him in the crib we will start getting to the bottom of what's wrong with him." Dr. Black gave him a reassuring smile.

"I just need to make a phone call first if that's ok. His momma is gonna wanna be here for this." Deacon replied.

"That's fine take your time." He reassured him.

Deacon scrolled through his contacts until he came to his brother's number. "Rhett, it's your big brother I need a favor." He spoke into the phone.

* * *

"Marcus, tone it down some on that last line. You're not singin' it you're screamin' it." Rayna pressed the intercom button on the mixing board.

"I'm just doing me." Marcus shrugged his shoulders.

"Then do a more toned down version of you. Also the baseline isn't working for this song we are going to have to do something else." She added.

"Whoa, whoa, wait a minute." He took his headphones off and walked into the mixing booth with her. "That's a good baseline. I don't know what you're talking about."

"That's the baseline for a rock song not a country song that's what's wrong with it." She told him bluntly.

"And that baseline is going to help this song sell. Apparently you don't know as much about music as you think you do. Maybe I would be better off with a new producer." He argued with her.

"You wanna replace me as your producer that's fine. But I promise you that you're gonna have a hard time finding someone to work with you since you have the reputation for bein' difficult. I've been in this business a long time and I can assure you that I've forgotten more about country music than most people ever know to begin with." She snapped back at him.

"I'm difficult to work with? The refer to you as the Queen of Country you don't earn that title by not being at least a little difficult trust me it's entirely a compliment." He yelled back at her.

Rhett ran into the room at that moment and broke up the argument. "Rayna, I just talked to Deacon you need to meet him at the ER. I wouldn't have disturbed you if it wasn't an emergency, but he's been tryin' to call you for awhile now."

Rayna went over and pulled her phone out of her purse. She saw that she had a bunch of missed calls from Deacon and the girls along with just as many texts. "Rhett, what's going on?"

"It's Jayme. He said that he's fine, but you need to come right now." Rhett reported.

She took her keys out of her purse and slung it over her shoulder without a second thought to Marcus. "Thank you for comin' to get me. I'll call you and let you know somethin' as soon as I do."

"Wait you're just going to leave like that? We are right in the middle of something." Marcus' jaw hung open.

"Marcus, my little boy is sick. He comes before me, so yeah I'm choosin' him over you." She called over her shoulder as she walked out the door.

* * *

Deacon stood outside of Jaymes' hospital room with a cup of coffee in his hand. He needed to take a breather, but he hadn't wanted to go far, so he'd had a nurse bring him some coffee while he stepped out into the hallway for a moment. He'd held his son while they drew his blood and started an IV to bring his fever down. The sounds of his anguished cries had obliterated his heart. More than once he'd reached out to take Rayna's hand only to realize she wasn't there.

He pulled his phone out of his shirt pocket and a small smile graced his face when he saw that it was Maddie calling. "Hey, baby girl, what's up?"

"I was just calling to make sure that Jayme is ok. He's just so little and helpless and I don't want anything bad to happen to him." Maddie replied. She sounded like she was on the verge of tears. Even though she refused to burp or feed him she was a little closer to Jaymes than she was to Little Deacon.

"He's still runnin' a fever and he's havin' tests run on him right now. Your baby brother is gonna be ok. He's in the best place he could be right now. They are gonna figure out what's wrong with him and he will be good as new before you know it. He will be crawlin' right behind you like always in no time." He tried his best to reassure her when he felt anything, but reassured himself.

"Ok, I'll let you go just call me as soon as you know anything." She begged him.

"I promise that I will call you as soon as I know somethin'. I love you, baby girl. You give Daphne and Deac a big kiss from daddy. I will talk to you later." He told her.

"I will, I love you too, daddy." She squeaked.

He hung up the phone and his shoulders slumped. He was holding it together, but barely. It wasn't that he was going to come apart, but he felt like he was going to cry at any minute. He lifted his head when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "You came."

"That's my baby boy of course I came. How is he?" Rayna asked.

"They took some blood to run tests and they started an IV to bring his fever down. He scared the shit outta me tonight, Ray." Deacon admitted.

"Why are you out here in the hall?" She questioned him.

"I needed to take a breath. There's a nurse in there now takin' his vitals. I had to sit there and hold him while they stuck him with needles. It was probably the single most terrible experience of my life." He replied.

"Let's go in and see our boy." She took his hand and gently guided him into the room.

She walked to one side of the crib and he walked to the other. Jaymes laid there in a little hospital gown with an IV in his arm. "Hi, my sweet baby boy, momma is here. I'm so sorry that I couldn't make it sooner, but I'm here now. And you had your amazingly strong daddy here to take care of you." She took his hand in hers. Jaymes was the momma's boy and there was no doubt about that.

He gently took the baby's other hand. "Daddy ain't so tough there were a couple of times he almost lost it." He looked across the crib at Rayna and their eyes met briefly before Dr. Black walked in.

"I have some good news for you. Jaymes is just suffering from a double ear infection. I know that he doesn't feel so great right now, but it's not as serious as it could have been. I'll proscribe some antibiotics and some eardrops for him. You can take him home as soon as his fever is down to a more manageable level." Dr. Black reported.

"Thank you so much, we are absolutely relieved to hear that. We were worried out of our minds." Rayna told him.

"You're very welcome. I'm gonna go get these prescriptions printed out and I will be back to check on him then. Hopefully his fever will be down by then and we can get you out of here." Dr. Black smiled before he took his leave.

Deacon covered his face with both of his hands and took a deep shuddering breath. "Oh, thank God, thank you. I was so worried."

Rayna walked over and wrapped her arms around him. "I know, babe, but you have been so strong tonight. For me and for your Rebel and for our other three babies. I know now that I never wanted to have babies with any man other than you." She moved his hands out of the way and brushed her lips against his softly.

"I'm doin' my best, Ray." He wiped his eyes.

"You're doing great, Deacon. You're the best husband and daddy a woman could ask for." She promised him.

* * *

"Here you guys go, be careful those cups are hot." JC handed Maddie and Daphne each a mug of hot chocolate.

"Thanks, babe." Maddie smiled at him. Little Deacon slept peacefully in her arms.

"Yeah, thanks, Jimmy." Daphne chirped happily.

"You're welcome. Want me to take him for you?" He offered.

"That would be great. He didn't use to be this heavy. My arm is falling asleep." Maddie groaned.

He very carefully transferred the baby into his arms. "That's because he's gettin' so big already. They both are." He sank down on the couch beside Maddie.

"I really hope Jayme is ok." Daphne more so than even her sister was extremely close to the boys.

"He'll be alright it's normal for babies as little as him to run fevers that high. It doesn't affect them the way it would someone around our ages. It's probably somethin' really common and there's an easy fix for it." He assured them both.

Maddie put her arm around her sister. "I just talked to dad a little while ago, Daph. And he said that the doctor is just waiting for his fever to go down some to let him come home."

Daphne snuggled into her side. "I know I'm just worried about him."

JC picked up the remote and turned on the tv. "Here, you two can make me watch whatever chick flick you want me to and I won't complain 'bout it."

"You're the best boyfriend ever." Maddie pecked his lips quickly and turned a movie on.

When Rayna and Deacon finally made it home with Jaymes both the girls and Little Deacon were all more or less sleeping on top of JC.

Deacon carefully took Jaymes out of his carrier so he didn't wake him and he laid him in his playpen. "Ok, it looks like we got some shufflin' 'round to do."

"You know those girls wake right up when you move 'em." Rayna reminded him.

"I'll get 'em it's late enough that they will go right back to sleep." He replied. He scooped Daphne up in his arms like she weighed nothing and carried her up to her room. He turned down her bed and tucked her in under her covers.

Daphne stirred and looked up at him. "Is Jayme ok?" She asked sleepily.

"He's gonna be just fine. You get some sleep and you can see him in the mornin'. I love you, sweet dreams, Squirt." He kissed her forehead.

"I love you too, dad." She yawned and fell back asleep quickly.

He stood there and looked at her for a moment and his heart swelled inside his chest. He went back downstairs and lifted Maddie up in his arms.

"Daddy?" Maddie questioned groggily.

"Yeah, it's me, baby girl." He replied.

"You can put me down I can walk." She told him.

"Just let me carry you." He wasn't surprised when she didn't fight him. He tucked her into her bed and dropped a kiss on her forehead as well.

Rayna laid little Deacon in the playpen next to his brother. She debated with herself for a minute before she grabbed a pillow and put it underneath JC's head. She pulled his boots off of his feet and put his legs up on the couch.

JC started to sit up and he blinked his eyes rapidly. "Hey, Rayna, I'm sorry I fell asleep. I should get up and go home."

"No, you're gonna sleep on this couch. I don't want you driving home like this." She pushed him back gently.

"Mmm, ok, whatever you say." He mumbled and went back to sleep.

Deacon came back down and shook his head. "We lettin' the boyfriend stay all night now?"

"It's late he's sleepy and I don't want him drivin' like that." Rayna replied.

"Hell, I know that. I don't care. I rather he sleep on the couch than try to drive home and get into an accident." He agreed with her.

"Why don't I take the boys up to bed and let you go wash that hospital smell off of you?" She suggested. She could see his anger bubbling just under the surface.

"Yeah, that would be nice." He headed upstairs to the shower. Once he was finished he went to the boys' room to check on them. He watched Rayna as she stood over Jaymes' crib talking to him.

"You really scared your momma and daddy tonight, little boy. You don't get to do that anymore. Momma is so sorry that she wasn't home when you got sick. Daddy did everything exactly right though. If you had seen him way back when you'd understand why I'm so impressed with him." She felt his forehead. "You've cooled down a lot. This is momma's fault I took you out in the wind without a hat on. I know better than that. That's something I would expect out of daddy. I've done this before he hasn't."

Deacon walked into the room. "That's not your fault that could have happened to either of us. You're a good momma, Ray." He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I just thank God that you acted as quickly as you did. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if you hadn't." She leaned against him.

"That was so unbelievably hard, babe. I had to hold him in my arms while they stuck him over and over with a needle. They couldn't find his vein because he was so dehydrated. He's gonna associate that bad experience with me for awhile. I reached out to take your hand so many times and you weren't there. I needed you tonight and you weren't there. I couldn't get ahold of you no matter how hard I tried. What happened tonight can never happen again." He told her.

"Babe, I know I'm sorry. My phone was on vibrate. When I have him working I don't like to interrupt him. He gets sidetracked enough as it is." She sighed.

"I really think that you should consider droppin' him from the label. He's just too much damn trouble." He retorted.

"You know tonight he had the audacity to tell me that I didn't know what good music sounded like or something to that effect." She informed him.

"You should've dropped his ass right then and there. He would have deserved it." He clenched and unclenched his jaw.

"If I didn't have so much money invested in him I would. The label needs this right now. I can't take a loss on this." She reasoned with him.

Deacon pulled away from her. "Listen, I don't wanna fight with you tonight, but if I have to hear one more damn thing 'bout Marcus I will lose my mind."

"What do you expect me to do, Deacon?" Rayna turned to glare at him.

"I expect you to answer your phone when I call. I wouldn't disturb you when you're workin' if it wasn't important." He arched his eyebrow.

"If we are gonna do this tonight we aren't gonna do this in here." She took him by the hand and dragged him into their bedroom. "Now go for it. Say all the things to me that you've been holdin' back. I can't take this cold war between us anymore."

"Ok, I'll say it. I ain't Teddy, Rayna. I'm not gonna sit back and pick up the slack while you're out puttin' your career before mine. I understand how important this label is to you and I do everythin' I can to help you. But you have put all the child rearin' and domestic responsibilities on me lately. You act like my career isn't as important as yours." He blasted her with both barrels. He was gonna say everything that was on his mind while he had the chance.

"That is not true and you know it. I would never accuse you of being like Teddy or treat you like I treated him. I actually want to be with you. I didn't marry you because you got me pregnant I married you because I wanted to. I don't put my career before yours. I know how important it is for you to finally have some success of your own. I want that for you, but I need you to be my partner. I know that I have been gone a lot lately, but so I can make sure the label that you're a part of doesn't crash and burn." She yelled at him.

"No, Rayna, you're damn selfish and I've let you get away with it as long as I've known you so it's on me. I'd get calls from huge artists to play guitar or write songs and they'd want to take me on, but I'd never do it, because you needed me. You didn't want me romantically anymore, but you damn sure wouldn't just let me go. Everythin' I've done since the moment I met you has been for you. I finally got sober for you. I fought every day to stay sober for you. You didn't even have the decency to tell me that you got married or that you were pregnant I had to get hit with that first thing after I got outta rehab." He yelled back.

"You were no damn saint, Deacon, and this isn't about back then this is about now. I didn't realize that taking care of our home and our children was such a chore for you." Even as the words left her mouth she knew that was a lie.

"It's not a chore for me at all I love the four of them fiercely, but I have turned into Mr. Mom lately. I shuttle the girls back and forth to school. I do soccer practices and I'm the one who takes them into the studio to record. I am with those boys damn near twenty-four hours a day seven days a week. Things that I thought you wanted to be 'round for. We talked 'bout this and what we wanted together. We were gonna take a step back and focus on our family. You know, Daphne called me dad tonight. When I was tuckin' her into bed she said 'I love you, dad' that was one of the best things I've ever heard. She thinks of me as her other daddy now. We've grown that close and you've missed it all." He listed off for her.

She stared him in the eyes. "She called you dad?"

"She called me dad." He gave her a half smile.

"Deacon, babe, listen I'm so sorry. You're right I've taken advantage of you lately. I just take it for granted that you have nothing else to do and you're going to take care of everything because that's what you do. You are so good to all of us and you do it without complaint or even expecting a thank you in return. The least I can do is respect you enough to ask you if you have anything that you need to do and stay home and take care things here while you do what you need to. I am selfish and you're the only man who has ever had enough balls to always call me out on my bullshit. I've put you on the back burner lately and that's not fair I've always without a doubt been your number one priority. I'm gonna do better, babe, I promise." She apologized. She went and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Apology accepted, babe. It just feels like you've forgotten all 'bout us lately. I know that's not true, but sometimes I just need a reminder that's all." He put his arms around her waist.

"I know that. Thank you for everything that you do for me and for our family. You are the best husband and daddy in the world. We are all extremely lucky to have you. You really came through for Jayme tonight. And you did it alone when you shouldn't have had to. Right now his daddy is his hero." She pressed a kiss to his lips.

He kissed her back and ran his hands up and down her back. "I love you so much." He mumbled.

"I love you too, babe." She rubbed her nose against his. "What do you say we go get that boy and have him sleep in between us tonight? I really just want to watch over him and make sure he's ok."

"I think that sounds like the best damn idea I've heard all night. You stay here I'll go get him." He replied.

"No you get into bed and I will go get him. It's my turn, baby." She pulled away from him and went to get Jaymes.

Deacon got into bed and fixed a spot in the middle for the baby. "There he is." He smiled when Rayna brought him into the room.

"Here he is, daddy." Rayna handed the baby over.

Deacon laid him in the middle of the bed and rolled over on his right side so he could see him. "He's all set, momma."

Rayna laid on her left side. "He's gonna be nice and comfy all night." She reached over and took Deacon's hand.

"Yeah he will. I love you, night." Deacon leaned over and kissed her gently and then he kissed Jaymes' head.

"I love you too, sleep well, babe." She too kissed the baby's head.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Just a little filler chapter to get us into some other stuff. We still have Scarlett and Gunnar's wedding to address and then the CMAs. So there is a lot of exciting stuff coming up. I think you guys will particularly enjoy the upcoming chapter it's time for Rayna and Deacon to make up in a way that only they can. If I do bring Frankie and Cash in it will be to fix that whole plot line and have it make some sense. Don't worry I have no intentions at all of having Maddie be emancipated. Until next time please review.


	68. Chapter 68

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 68

Rayna reached over for her cell phone as it rang. "Hey, is he on his way?" She asked her caller. She listened to what was said and nodded her head. "Alright, thanks for doing this for me, Tandy. I really appreciate it." She hung up the phone.

She got out of bed and went into one of Deacon's drawers. She pulled out one of his old flannel shirts. She put it on and tied it up at her midriff without bothering to put a bra on. She left two of the top buttons undone. She opened up her underwear drawer and took out a pair of lacy black panties that she knew were a particular favorite of Deacon's. She put those and a pair of cutoff shorts on before going to sit in front of her vanity. She tussled her hair and put on a little makeup. She sprayed some of her perfume between the valley of her breasts.

She got done with enough time to spare to make it down to the kitchen. She got up on the counter and crossed her legs.

Deacon walked in the front door a few minutes later muttering to himself. "Woman is gonna be ten minutes late for her funeral and she's gonna forget her casket."

"Hey, Cowboy, did you forget somethin'?" Rayna pulled his attention in her direction.

His jaw fell open with an audible pop. "What is this? I thought you had somethin' else to do today and that's why the boys and I went to work alone this mornin'."

"I may have led you to believe that for my own purposes." She smirked at him.

"You set me up." He grinned goofily.

"I wanted this to be a surprise. Think of this as my way of apologizin' for bein' so neglectful lately." She bit her lip sexily.

"I think maybe I oughta punish you for this." He walked over to her lazily his movements made that much harder by his growing erection. She drove him absolutely wild and what made it worse was that she knew the power she had over him. He buried his face between her breasts and he bit, licked, and sucked at the sensitive skin there.

"Mmm, God, baby, you are so good with your mouth." She threaded her fingers through his hair and then she used it to pull his head back and kiss him roughly.

"What am I gonna do with you?" He asked against her lips.

"The idea was for you to do whatever the hell you want with me." She bit his bottom lip.

"I know exactly where I'm gonna start." Deacon gripped the tops of her thighs and pulled her to the edge of the counter. He put his hand between her legs and rubbed the fabric of her jeans and panties against her clit. "Damn, girl, if these things get any tighter you're gonna need paint thinner to get 'em off."

"Just the way you like 'em. I can't tell you how many times this pair of shorts has made you lose your mind." Rayna purred.

He kissed her lips then down between her breasts. He unbuttoned the flannel shirt and kissed each new patch of skin as it came into view. He continued his downward trek over her flat stomach. He marveled for a moment at how she had kept her figure despite having four children. He dipped his tongue into her belly button and swirled it around before kissing lower. That elicited a moan from her.

He paused to unsnap the button on her shorts. He lifted her up and pulled them and her panties down her legs. He cast the garments aside without bothering to see where they had landed. He spread her legs and dropped down to his knees. He kissed both of her inner thighs. He glanced up and looked her dead in the eyes as he flicked his tongue out and licked her clit.

She gasped in surprise she'd been expecting him to torture her for a little while longer. She arched her eyebrow when she saw his eyes sparkling with mirth.

Deacon pushed two of his long, thick fingers into her pussy and curled them. He knew exactly what that did to her. He wrapped his lips around her clit he licked and sucked at the tiny nub and pumped his fingers in and out of her.

Rayna threw her head back and her chest heaved up and down with arousal. With as long as it had been it didn't take long for her to reach the edge at all.

When he could sense that she was close he pulled back and smirked up at her. The look on his face said that he was up to no good.

"No, babe, no, please I'm so damn close." She begged him.

"Yeah, I know, but I don't know if you've been quite good enough for me to let you come yet." He replied conversationally.

"You wouldn't dare, Deacon." She glared at him.

"Oh, I would dare and you know I would." He grinned again.

She slid down off the counter. "Stand up," She knew exactly how to get him to do what she wanted.

He got up from his knees and stood in front of her with a prominent bulge in the front of his jeans.

Rayna dropped to her knees, unbuckled his belt, and undid his jeans. She pushed his jeans and his boxers down around his ankles.

Deacon toed his boots and socks off and then he kicked his jeans and boxers across the room.

She took his hard dick in her hand and started licking up and down his shaft. She circled her tongue around the tip. She used her other hand to play with his balls.

He grunted and groaned. "Jesus, Ray," He felt that good and she hadn't even started sucking him yet.

She took him into her mouth she raked her teeth against his dick gently as she took him in further. She moved her head up and down licking and sucking as she went.

His breath hitched in his throat and he tangled his hand up in her hair. With the way she was going it wouldn't take him long to come at all. As much as he always enjoyed her blowjobs this wasn't where he wanted to come right now. He pulled out of her mouth and pulled her up to her feet. "With as good as you were suckin' me I was gonna blow at any minute. I much rather come in that hot pussy of yours."

"God, Deacon, you know how much I love it when you talk dirty to me." She pressed up against him and pushed her tongue into his mouth before she pulled away and went and bent over the arm of the couch. She looked over her shoulder at him. "Come fuck me, babe."

He didn't need to be told twice. He slid up behind her after he took his shirt off. He smacked her ass and smiled when she let out a soft moan. "Yeah, my bad girl likes that." He leaned over and growled in her ear.

"Just the sound of your voice makes me wet." She told him.

Without warning Deacon slid his turgid cock into her soaking wet pussy. He went all the way to the hilt in one thrust. They both moaned in relief as he started pounding into her. He reached underneath her and used one hand to play with her nipples while he rubbed her clit with the other.

"Babe, if you keep that up I'm gonna be comin' in no time." Rayna warned him. Both of her nipples hardened under his touch.

"Come for me, baby." He licked the shell of her ear. He rubbed her clit faster and picked up the pace of his thrusts.

"Oh, fuck, oh, God, babe, I'm comin'." She yelled out as her orgasm tore through her body.

He just grunted in response and started to empty his load into her. "Fuck, Ray." He swept her hair aside and kissed the back of her neck.

"Deacon," She groaned in pleasure. "That was amazin', babe, I really needed that."

He pulled out of her quickly and swung her up into his arms. "I ain't done with you yet." He pressed a kiss to her lips and carried her up to their bedroom.

She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I was hopin' you'd say that."

He tossed her onto the the bed and she giggled. "Now, as much as I like seein' you in that shirt of mine I'm gonna need you to take it off."

Rayna took the flannel shirt off and threw it at him. "Happy now?"

"Very, very, happy." Deacon crawled into the bed and got on top of her.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. They lay on the top of the bed just making out for a little while. That turned into touching and that led to another round of sex. They went at it all morning exploring each other's bodies like it was the first time. Finally, they fell asleep in each other's arms.

Rayna woke up around one when she felt the other side of the bed dip. "Look at you, handsome."

Deacon was fresh out of the shower and he'd put a clean set of clothes on. He had the perfect amount of stubble on his face. He leaned over and kissed her. He chuckled when she deepened the kiss. "It seems like you can't get enough of me today."

"I can never get enough of you, but I am already so sore in a good way." She laughed.

"We gotta make more time for that in the future." He grinned.

"I agree with you there." She replied.

"Why don't you get in the shower and then we can go do somethin' for lunch?" He suggested.

"That would be amazin', babe." She agreed with him.

"I think your accent has gotten thicker since we got married." He observed.

"My accent always gets thicker 'round you. I ain't the one from the deep south that's you. When I was splittin' my time between you and Aunt Dottie back in high school her and Tandy would make fun of me because I started to pick up on your accent." She informed him.

"That wasn't just me you picked that accent up from back then. Vince's was as bad as mine if not worse except he was from Texas." He reminded her.

"I know that his offspring is dating our daughter and he sounds just like his daddy." She replied.

"That he does. Vinny would have gotten a big kick outta the two of them datin'." He smiled fondly.

"If Vince had been alive he would have seen that she was your daughter. He was always pretty damn good at seeing past my bullshit. That's why we fought so much. I've lost count of the number of times he'd tell me to stop being such a spoiled little princess." She recalled.

"God, you two fought like cats and dogs." He shook his head.

"Because he was an ass and I was perfect I don't know what else to tell you." She smirked and got up out of bed. "I'm gonna go take a shower and get ready." She walked into the bathroom before he had a chance to put up an argument to what she had just said.

* * *

A half hour later she was finally dressed and ready to leave the house.

"Should we go by the office and check on the boys first? I know that it's been two days since Jayme's had a fever, but I still wanna make sure he isn't too fussy." Deacon wondered out loud.

"Tandy has him, he's fine. She just texted a little while ago to let me know that he's doing ok. She knows how to handle a sick baby she used to watch the girls all the time." Rayna slipped her arm through his.

He walked her to the truck and opened the door for her and helped her in. "There you go."

"Thanks, babe." She kissed him quickly before he shut the door.

He got into the driver's seat and started the truck. "You're welcome, baby."

They headed to the Mile Marker for lunch.

"Hey, ya'll how are you doin'?" June greeted them both with a huge hug.

"We are better than good." Rayna smiled.

"That's what I like to hear. How's my Jayme doin'?" June asked.

"He's gettin' better, momma. He scared the hell outta his daddy the other night, but he's a Claybourne he's tough." Deacon answered her.

"Good, I'm glad, I've been worried 'bout him. Now, I hope you're both hungry. You can't come in here without me feedin' you." June put her hands on her hips.

"It's true, Jimmy and I have had to up our five mile runs to ten miles. She keeps us well fed." Rhett sat on the barstool eating.

"You get outta bed before your shift starts?" Deacon teased him.

"Yeah, I have mornin' workouts with Jimmy and Mack if he can make it. Then I spend time every day gettin' myself acquainted with more than Music Row and Lower Broad. I can proudly find my way around Nashville usin' this bar or Highway Sixty-five as a guide. I may or may not have a try out for a startup farm league team. I don't know if I'm gonna take it or not." Rhett reported.

"Really? Who with?" Rayna asked out of curiosity.

"I don't know. The name of the company is VMJW Sports. I've never heard of it. It's fairly new. It's parent company is LTW Holdings." Rhett answered her.

Deacon crossed his arms over his chest. "And that is a wholly owned subsidiary of Wyatt Industries."

"How do you know that and I don't?" Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"I don't know how I didn't black that out either. You had to learn that once cause we had to go to a dinner." Deacon replied.

"What on God's green earth are you two talkin' 'bout?" June asked them.

"Virginia Madison Jaymes Wyatt. V-M-J-W. He's not very creative sometimes." Deacon rolled his eyes. "Rhett, if you want the tryout it's yours. That company is owned by my father-in-law."

"That impresses me so much that you know my momma's full name." Rayna smiled at him.

"I oughta we named two of our children after her." Deacon shrugged.

"So, you think this is legit?" Rhett asked.

"Rhett, this is legit. If you're as good as everyone says you are my daddy is gonna trip over himself to sign you to a contract. When it comes time for that we are gonna get my sister to negotiate your contract for you. Tandy about the only one that can keep him from screwing you over she knows how he operates." Rayna told him.

"What are you talkin' 'bout now?" Deacon looked confused.

"I'll explain later. I could have sworn I told you, but I'm not really shocked that I haven't. I haven't exactly had enough sleep to function lately and I probably thought I told you, but I didn't." Rayna waved him off.

"Both of you just park your asses on those stools and let me feed you." June shook her head at them.

"Yes, ma'am." Deacon did as he was told.

"How come you don't listen to me that well?" Rayna sat down next to him.

"Because you and I are both strong willed people with hard heads and we ain't gonna listen to each other. Which is why our children don't listen." Deacon winked at her.

"I've decided Maddie and Deac are your children Daphne and Jayme are mine. You can have the difficult two." Rayna smirked.

"You two just order somethin' and behave yourselves." June told them.

Deacon reached over the bar and grabbed two menus. "Here you go, babe." He handed one to Rayna.

"Thank you." Rayna pecked his lips.

"You're welcome," Deacon smiled against her lips.

"Do you two mind? I'm tryin' to get here. I don't wanna have to watch y'all eye fuck each other." Rhett quipped.

"Rhett Timothy," June warned him.

"You let her know your middle name? Deacon quirked his eyebrow.

"I didn't let her know my middle name. I had to give her my driver's license 'cause I wanna get paid." Rhett replied.

"And I wish she didn't know mine sometimes." Deacon nodded his head. He went behind the bar and got him and Rayna both a glass of tea. "Momma, where's Bev today?"

"She's out lookin' at dresses to get an idea of what she wants. And I'm to remind you that you need to get a tux." June told him.

"I know I have to get to the tailor." Deacon sighed.

"You just have to pick out the suit you want or Scarlett needs to pick it. I already called your tailor and gave them your measurements." Rayna rubbed his arm.

"See, momma? She takes such good care of me." Deacon grinned.

"Speakin' of that. Where the hell are Will, Avery, Gunnar, and Jimmy? We are all supposed to get fit for our tuxes this afternoon." Rhett looked at his watch.

"Did you personally drop Maddie off at school and watch her walk in?" Rayna looked at Deacon.

"Of course I did. Jimmy ain't stupid enough for that he's scared shitless of you." Deacon assured her.

"The key words in that sentence were also Jimmy and Will. I'm sure that they probably did somethin' to Gunnar and they will be along shortly." Rayna said after thinking it over.

"That's true." Rhett just laughed and kept his comments to himself on that one. They all took turns tormenting Gunnar to no end.

* * *

"Here, you can take your hell spawn and you can take your dog." Tandy placed Jaymes in Rayna's arms as soon as she walked into the office.

"He doesn't mean to be so cranky, Aunt Tandy, he's just tryin' to get over bein' sick." Rayna laughed at her. "And that's Deacon's dog if he's bein' a pain in the ass."

"It sounds like you've been around your husband again. Your accent is that much thicker when you're around him. You had one to begin with and it gets so much worse when you're around him." Tandy couldn't resist giving her sister a hard time.

"Tandy, you can't help yourself can you? You have to know everythin' 'bout me and Deacon." Rayna asked her.

"You bring it to me. What do you expect? And might I add that he has to have the staying power of a man half his age. You two were gone a long time. I'm surprised that you're walking comfortably." Tandy smirked.

"Babe, you know a lady just doesn't kiss and tell, but between you, me, and these four walls I don't have anythin' to complain about." Rayna retorted.

"I really feel for my poor nieces and nephews having to live in the same house with you two. I don't know how they put up with it." Tandy shook her head.

"I don't think we've scarred them too badly. If that's all they have to tell their therapists when they get older we will be in good shape. Thank you for doing this for me today. We were headed for one huge blowup if I didn't do something to diffuse that situation. I was actually in the doghouse for a change normally it's him. I really did screw up for a change, but I'm not gonna admit to him how badly." Rayna replied.

"You don't have to thank me. I'm happy to have those boys. They make my day entertaining. Deac was the good one today normally that's Jayme. And of course you aren't going to admit that to him. You two play a sick twisted game with each other. I don't know how you both do it. It's either all in or all out with you two and you're volatile under the best of circumstances." Tandy pointed out to her.

"We aren't that bad anymore. I admit that we were bad in the past, but we've gotten better in age. We have an actual adult relationship now." Rayna defended.

"Where is your wild stallion anyway?" Tandy had an amused look on her face.

"Do not say that in front of him. He already thinks I tell you everything about our sex life. He doesn't give a damn, but he loves to give me a hard time about it." Rayna cautioned her.

"I don't need to know anymore than the vague things I do to know that you two are dirty. Trust me I've heard stories from Bucky." Tandy replied.

Rayna bent over and picked Little Deacon up. "Come on, Bubba. We need to get you away from Aunt Tandy before she has you as bad as she is. We are gonna go to daddy's office and keep him company while he tries to work."

"Dada," Little Deacon babbled and his face lit up with a smile.

"Yeah, we are gonna go see your dada. When are you gonna say something more than that? When are you gonna say momma, huh? I'm starting to think you like him better than you like me. That's ok your brother is a momma's boy though." Rayna kissed his cheek and blew a raspberry.

Little Deacon giggled loudly.

Rayna did the same thing to Jaymes and he giggled as well. "There's my happy boy. Momma is so glad that you're starting to feel better." She cooed at him. "Ok, boys, tell Aunt Tandy bye bye and thank you for watching us." She waved their little hands at their aunt and walked out the door.

"Hey, what are you three up to?" Deacon walked out from behind his desk and took his namesake from his wife. "There's my Outlaw. How's my Rebel doin' today?"

"I think he's feeling much better today, daddy. I even got a little laugh out of him just a minute ago." She answered.

"That is just what daddy wanted to hear. He was worried about his boy." He peppered kisses all over Jaymes' face.

Jaymes made a face when Deacon's facial hair touched his skin and he let out a little whine. "Da,"

"Oh, you're so fussy about my facial hair. You don't like it when it touches you. Look at your Bubba see he doesn't mind it." He took Little Deacon's hand and ran it over his beard.

"Dada, dada," He babbled and he blew a spit bubble.

"Deacon, you could blow your nose and that little boy would think it was the greatest thing in the world." She pointed out to him.

"I know that, I'm his daddy that's how it's supposed to be." He shrugged his shoulders.

"So, what do you want to do now?" She asked him.

"Well, I don't really have any work to do at the moment and we could cut out of here early if you really wanted to." He replied.

"I should probably go to my office and return a few phone calls. I know that Marcus has been blowing up my phone all day. You should come the next time I have him in the studio he really wants to work with you." She informed him.

"I don't know that I'd be able to resist the temptation to wrap my hands around his throat, but I could try." He offered.

"Babe, you're one of the best songwriters in the business and I think if I want this album to truly be a success I'm gonna need no matter how much you don't like him. I'm not asking you to do it for him. I'm asking you to do this for me. He's makin' me crazy." She pleaded with him.

"Ok, I will do it for you and only because I want you to be done with this album in the worst way possible." He relented.

"Do you have anything going on tonight?" She asked.

"There are a couple artists playing at the Mile Marker that Bucky wants me to check out. I'm gonna go do that, but other than that I don't really have anythin' goin' on." He answered.

"Do you know if you have any slots open on your roster tonight?" She wondered.

"I happen to know for a fact that we do. Why?" He asked in reply.

"Well, I was thinking that it's been a few weeks since I've sang in public. I want to feel like an artist again instead of a producer and a label head. I was also hoping that you'd join me. We could do a stripped down intimate version of some of our older songs." She suggested.

"I think that sounds like a damn good idea let's do it." He grinned at her.

"Sugar, that's all we did all day. I'm lucky I can even sit right now. Jesus, I don't know how I always forget how big you are." She stole a kiss from him.

"And just think that's all yours for the rest of your life." He wrapped his free arm around her waist.

"I know. And I wouldn't have it any other way." She smiled at him brightly.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I think this is the chapter you've all been waiting for. It got a little hot and steamy. Until next time please review.


	69. Chapter 69

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 69

Deacon hauled his and Rayna's gear into the Mile Marker. To be fair she didn't need more than a mic he needed at least three different guitars for this set they were going to play.

"Deacon, we have a problem." Beverly met him on stage and didn't give him time to put his stuff down.

"What kind of problem?" Deacon groaned as he set his stuff down.

"Our sound tech called in sick and we have no one that can fill in for him." She explained.

"Lucky for you that I can solve that problem with a phone call." He took his phone out of his pocket and dialed a number. "Hey, it's me. I need you to come down to the Mile Marker I'll explain everythin' when you get here." He listened to what the other person had to say. "Great, I'll see you then."

"What was that all about?" She asked.

"That was me callin' Gunnar. He used to do this at the Bluebird. He will do just fine for the night. Your future son-in-law does have usefulness other than bein' a target for the other guys to pick on." He answered her.

"You never stop amazin' me, Baby Brother. You really are in your element here." She smiled at him.

"I've been in this town goin' on thirty years, Bev. I should know a few people." He chuckled.

"I have another problem maybe you can help out with." She walked off the stage with him.

"I can try." He replied.

"I'm havin' trouble findin' a dress that I like for the weddin'. And I was hopin' you'd know someone." She told him.

"I'm so not the person to talk to 'bout that. Talk to your sister-in-law. She's forgotten more 'bout that then I will ever know." He retorted.

"Baby Brother, you know that I can't afford anythin' like that." She pointed out to him.

"Bev, you know that I'm takin' care of this. Don't worry 'bout the cost. Just talk to her, ya'll can go do that girly thing where you freak out 'bout shoppin' or whatever it is you do that I rather not know 'bout." He reassured her. "Hey, Ray, Bev needs to ask you somethin'." He didn't give his sister another choice.

"What can I help you with, Bev?" Rayna asked.

"I need to get a dress for Scarlett's weddin'." Bev replied.

"You came to the right person. My stylist is miracle worker who knows more people than even Deacon does. I'm sure that she can find you something. If not then I probably need to fire her." Rayna did her best to keep her tone light. Things were still stilted between her and Beverly. Neither one of them really knew how to relate to the other. They both tried for Deacon's sake, but they didn't know how to act like family.

"That would be really great." Beverly smiled.

"You two could probably squeeze that in tomorrow. I have a very borin' meetin' scheduled with the head of A and R and the CFO. Durin' which I will get lectured 'bout how I use my expense account when it comes to courtin' artists. So, someone should get some enjoyment out of tomorrow, 'cause it ain't gonna be me." Deacon backed them into a corner where they couldn't say no to him.

"Actually, tomorrow works for me." Rayna looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"It works for me too." Beverly agreed.

"Then it's settled." He smiled at both of them. He checked his watch. "Where the hell is that damn Gunnar at? Though I probably can't blame him for bein' late. Will and Jimmy probably let the air outta his tires or somethin'."

"I don't think our baby brother is entirely innocent when it comes to doin' things to Gunnar." Beverly pointed out.

"Oh, I know he's not. And I just shudder to think what it's gonna be like when Jimmy, Will, and Rhett share the same house." He shook his head.

Gunnar walked in about twenty minutes later with Scarlett. "Deacon, I came right down. What's the issue?"

"Your future mother-in-law needs a sound tech. You're only one of the best I know." Deacon explained.

"Ok, I'll get everything set up. You keep all the cables and stuff in the store room right?" Gunnar double checked.

"Yeah, that's where they are. You ok with broadcasting this on radio? We have a podcast." Deacon confirmed.

"I've played sold out stadiums. I can handle one little podcast." Gunnar assured him.

"Someone has been hangin' out 'round his future aunt a little too long. He's startin' to sound a little full of himself." Deacon teased. He was of course referring to Rayna.

"Boy, after how nice I was to you earlier today you better watch it." Rayna smirked.

"You know that I don't play nice." Deacon winked at her.

"Gunnar, don't get sucked into whatever game my uncle is tryin' to play with ya. Go set up like he asked you to." Scarlett laughed.

"I'm just gonna do that now." Gunnar walked off to set up.

"You crack the whip and that boy listens." Deacon joked.

"You can't talk 'bout anyone. Rayna doesn't even have to get your name out her mouth and you jump up." Scarlett zinged him.

"No, that was when she was pregnant and every time she so much as made a noise I didn't like I jumped up. Her OB scared the shit outta me. Had me thinkin' the boys were gonna come super early because they were multiples." Deacon defended himself.

"Baby Brother, we all know that when she jerks on your leash you go runnin'." Beverly laughed at the face he made.

"Bev, momma's not here right now I will fire you. Go on and test me." Deacon shot back.

"She'd just make you hire me back and we both know that." Beverly arched her eyebrow.

"So? I'd still get the satisfaction of doin' it for a few minutes. Doesn't mean I wouldn't give you your job right back. It'd just make me feel better." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

"Do they normally fight this much?" Rhett asked Scarlett.

"They have as long as I've known 'em." Scarlett offered.

"Rhett, don't you have something that you need to go do? Like go announce the first artist preformin' tonight?" Deacon asked his brother.

"As soon as Gunnar gets set up I'll go do that." Rhett replied.

Gunnar went through getting everything set up and he checked to make sure it was working. He came back over to the table. "Everything is good to go."

"Do you know anythin' 'bout these artists I'm supposed to be checkin' out?" Deacon asked Rayna.

"No, I personally listen to all the demos that come in, but the whole grassroots thing is you and Bucky." Rayna answered.

"Looks like I'm up." Rhett excused himself and grabbed a mic as he walked up on stage. "Hey, ya'll, it's good to be standin' here talkin' to you again. We are gonna change things up just a little tonight. We got a surprise or two in store for ya. Help me give a warm Mile Marker welcome to our first performer."

The two performers that Deacon was supposed to check out played.

"What did you think, Ray?" Deacon asked.

"They both bear a second listen I say get a demo from them and we will listen to it together." Rayna replied.

"Alright, I will do that." He agreed.

Rhett got back on the stage. "Now, if ya'll will remember earlier I said that we had a couple of surprises in store for you tonight. Put your hands together for Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne."

Rayna and Deacon took the stage amid thunderous applause. They both sat on stools close to each other facing the crowd.

"Listen to that, Ray, you'd think they know who we are or somethin'." Deacon joked.

"They know who I am anyway you're just my husband and former guitar player. It's not like you have a hit album out right now or anything." Rayna teased.

He arched his eyebrow at her. "She's a riot if I didn't love her so much I don't know how I'd live with her. So, we are gonna start off with a new song tonight and then we will get into some of our older stuff." He picked up his guitar and started strumming it. _"You haunt me when I fall asleep. You're in every breath I breathe. I still hear your footsteps down the hall."_ He sang into the mic and stared at Rayna.

" _And I keep trying to pretend this ache for you is gonna end. But I know better than that now."_ She stared back into his eyes as she sang.

" _So baby please tell me why don't we? Take this time we wasted and don't hold back let's face it I need you and baby you need me. We're all we've been missin' if we could just stop resistin' and give in to what's supposed to be. And I'll surrender to you if you surrender to me."_ They sang together. This was a song from their duet album. They weren't launching that for a few more weeks. They'd written this song over the summer while they were out on tour.

" _I hear your whisper in the air at night. You're in every single song I write and every melody I play."_ He picked up again.

" _It's doesn't matter where I run I come back to what I'm runnin' from. Your face is everywhere I turn."_ Their voices joined together again.

" _So baby please tell me why don't we? Take this time we wasted and don't hold back let's face it I need you and baby you need me. We're all we've been missin' if we could just stop resistin' and give in to what's supposed to be. And I'll surrender to you if you surrender to me. I'll surrender to you if you surrender to me."_

They looked at each other like there was no one else in the room. He leaned over and pecked her lips. The crowd went absolutely wild.

They played a few more of their songs the old mixed in with the new.

"Deacon, what do you say we do one that we haven't done in awhile?" Rayna asked him. They really didn't have a set list for this they were just making it up as they went along.

"Are you talkin' from back in the days when we were playin' covers in roadside bars for a take of the door?" Deacon asked.

"That's exactly what I'm talking about. And I think you know which one to start playing." She gave him a meaningful look.

"I do," He Started picking out the tune on his guitar. "Whenever you're ready, babe."

"I'm goin' off your count, sugar." She smiled at him.

They locked eyes for a moment and they both nodded. _"Galveston, oh Galveston I still hear your sea wings blowin'. I still her dark eyes glowin'. She was twenty-one when I left Galveston."_ They sang together.

" _Galveston, oh Galveston I still hear your sea waves crashin'. While I watch the cannons flashin' I clean my gun and dream of Galveston."_ She winked at him as they sang.

He arched an eyebrow at her and angled his body closer to hers. _"I still see her standin' by the water. Standin' there lookin' out to sea. And is she waitin' there for me? On the beach where we used to run."_

Rayna draped herself over his shoulder so they could share a mic. _"Galveston, oh Galveston I m so afraid of dyin' before I dry the tears she's cryin'. Before I watch your seabirds flyin' in the sun at Galveston, at Galveston."_

"I don't know 'bout ya'll, but I don't think we sounded too bad. It's been a good long while since we did that song." Deacon laughed.

"It's been longer than I want you to put a date on right now." She bumped her hip against his.

"Thank ya'll for lettin' us hijack the stage for a couple hours. I hope you had as much fun as we did and we will do it again soon." He thanked the crowd.

"God, that brought back good memories didn't it?" Rayna asked him once they were in the truck.

"It did those were the lean times that's for sure, but we had fun back then. Was tonight what you wanted it to be?" Deacon replied.

"Tonight was exactly what I needed. Thank you for doing that with me, baby. I just need to feel like I'm more than just a label head sometimes." She admitted.

"You just tell me when you get feelin' like that and I will be happy to remind you of everythin' else you are." He reached over and took her hand.

"You really are too perfect for words sometimes." She kissed his hand.

"After all the shit I've put you through you deserve it." He told her.

"You're not the only one who made mistakes. I'm lucky that you even forgave me. What I did to you was so much worse than anythin' you ever put me through." She moved the center console out of the way and scooted closer to him. She took his arm and put it around her shoulder.

"We used to drive 'round like this all the time. In that old truck that I drove here from Mississippi. You would have thought it was a Cadillac though for as quick as you were to climb up in it with me." He recalled fondly.

"I never cared that you came from nothin' or what your truck looked like. I just wanted to be with you. That has always been true even when we were both with other people. I didn't just keep you around because of Maddie. I kept you around for me too. No matter what when we were on that stage we still belonged to each other. And if that was the only way I could feel that way again I was gonna take it. It was better than not having you at all." She laid her head on his shoulder.

"That part I always knew even if you couldn't admit to it. We were kiddin' ourselves thinkin' that somethin' this powerful was ever just gonna go away. As a matter of fact, the pull we have on each other gets stronger the more time goes by." He kissed her head quickly.

"I've apologized to you for keepin' Maddie from you. But I've never apologized for makin' you have to fight to be her daddy. You lied to the world for me and I couldn't even help you be a father to our daughter. I pushed you away, because I was scared, babe." She needed to get that off her chest.

"We are right where we are supposed to be now and none of that matters." He assured her.

* * *

The next morning Rayna pulled up in front of the house that June and Beverly shared. Beverly was already out front waiting for her.

"He let you drive his truck?" She asked as she got into the passenger side.

"He needed the SUV today he got roped into carpool duty this morning. He really is not happy about the fact that I'm driving his truck." Rayna replied.

"He's always been like that. Pawpaw helped him scrape together enough money to buy his first truck. Deacon worked his ass off to pay for half and pawpaw covered the other half. He would hide his keys just so daddy wouldn't be able to find them and wrap his truck 'round a tree or somethin'." Beverly informed her.

"That truck ended up giving out on the side of the road while we were twenty miles from civilization. We had to walk five miles just to call a tow truck." Rayna recounted as she drove.

"I'm sure bein' stranded alone in the middle of nowhere really bothered you two." Beverly rolled her eyes.

"As I recall we made pretty good use of that alone time." Rayna smirked. She drove them to the small shop that her stylist owned.

"Your stylist has to moonlight?" Beverly asked.

"Between tours and appearances she doesn't have much to do so she has this shop to keep her busy." Rayna grabbed her purse from the back seat.

"You just foot the bill for everythin' don't ya?" Beverly quipped. She still had some left over resentment.

Rayna took off her sunglasses and turned to look at her sister-in-law. "We might as well have it out right here right now. We both love Deacon and only want him to be happy and he loves both of us. We have to find some common ground here. I don't wanna keep fightin' with you. I get you think that I'm the devil incarnate and if not for me then he would have come back home and that I kept him from you. He chose me over you and he made it big, but you didn't and it's my fault, because I kept him from bein' part of you and your momma. I didn't though I told him that he needed to get home more than he did. It took me years to get outta him why he didn't wanna go back. There was no forcing him. You know as well as I do how he is. The harder you push the farther away he's gonna pull."

"I also don't wanna see my brother get hurt again. We both know that he will go crawlin' back to you no matter what you do to him. I'll be the first to admit that it was his fault for not gettin' help for his drinkin'. But he had so much potential. He could have fronted his own band he wouldn't do it because of you. You needed him and he had to follow you around like some lost puppy dog no matter how many times you kicked him. He went crawlin' back to you after he got out of rehab the last time and you let him back into your band knowin' you were keepin' his daughter from him. You let him back into your bed knowin' the same damn thing. After he found out he wrecked thirteen years of sobriety over you and you pushed him away. He had to fight to get to know his daughter. He's the man you want him to be now, but how soon before he does somethin' you don't like and you drop him again?" Beverly retorted.

"You aren't on the inside of this relationship. Deacon and I have both made mistakes. My biggest regret is keeping Maddie from him because he is a phenomenal daddy. You didn't live with him while he was drunk you have no idea what he was like. He once accidently gave me a black eye because I tried to wake him up while he was passed out. He was sorry for it, he boohooed and I knew that he didn't mean too, but I couldn't take the chance that that would happen to my child. We've both found a way to forgive each other we don't live in the past. I recognize that I probably hurt him worse than he has ever hurt me, but I swear that I will never purposely hurt him again. You can take my word for it or you don't have to, but I'm not goin' anywhere. He's stuck with me for life whether he likes it or not." Rayna told her firmly.

"Call me crazy, but I believe you. He's my baby brother and he protected me from daddy so many times. I just wanna make sure that I try to protect him for once. I don't have to worry 'bout you hurtin' him again. I know that. I also know that you did a lot to help out with Scarlett when I couldn't take care of her. So, I'd say it's time for us to bury the hatchet we are family now after all." Beverly finally said.

"I would like that a lot." Rayna smiled a little. "Let's go on inside and see what Liz can work out for you." She got out of the truck.

"She's that good?" Beverly asked.

"She's better than that." Rayna informed her. She opened the door to the shop and walked in.

"Rayna, what are you doin' here?" Liz stepped out from behind the counter to greet them.

"Do you want me to find someone else to dress me for my niece's wedding?" Rayna teased her.

"You know the answer to that." Liz replied.

"Liz, this is my sister-in-law Beverly. She's Scarlett's momma I want you to take really good care of her. I also need to start thinkin' about what I'm gonna wear for the CMAs. And also put this on Deacon's tab." Rayna introduced the two women.

"It's nice to meet you I could tell you stories that your brother and your sister-in-law don't want you to know." Liz smiled at Beverly.

"Nice to meet you too. Nothin' those two did would surprise me though." Beverly smiled back.

"Me either truthfully." Liz shrugged her shoulders. "And after the last time you put somethin' on Deacon's tab he told me not to let you do it anymore."

"I know that you ain't gonna just listen to him." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"Of course I'm not. I'll make up things to put on his tab if I want to. That'll teach him to try to hustle me at poker while we're out on the road. The night ya'll played Mobile him along with your dumbass drummer decided to hustle me at poker. So as far as I'm concerned you can charge whatever the hell you want on his tab." Liz shook her head.

"Need I remind you that I warned you not to marry the dumbass drummer before you married the dumbass drummer? Deacon has a history of misbehaving with my drummers I don't know what that shocks or surprises you in any way." Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"That doesn't surprise me at all. The part that really shocked me was that he got Daphne to help him." Liz replied.

"Daddy's girl will do whatever daddy asks no matter how much trouble it could get her in. She's his shadow. I think him bein' around has really helped her through the whole mess that Teddy made." Rayna nodded her head thoughtfully.

"That's really good." Liz smiled. "Now, if you want me to get to work go do somethin' with yourself. I'll never get anythin' done with your distractin' me this way. You know where everythin' is just help yourself and don't make a mess."

"When have I ever done anythin' like that?" Rayna feigned innocence.

"I can't count the number of times. You're so lucky you're my best client or I would have been done with you a long time ago." Liz teased.

"Stop complainin' you know I pay you well. Just help Bev I will be fine on my own." Rayna waved her off.

"It's the leavin' you alone part that worries me. There's no tellin' what you'll order." Liz rolled her eyes. She turned to Bev. "Let me get your measurements while your sister-in-law does whatever the hell it is she's gonna do. I wouldn't be at all surprised if I come back out here and see I have a fifty-thousand-dollar shipment comin' in."

"And here I thought only my brother couldn't be left unsupervised." Beverly cracked a smile.

"He's worse than she is, but she can come close to bein' as bad as him when she wants to. We are just gonna go in back. I have some really nice things that I think will look perfect on you." Liz put her arm around Beverly's shoulders and led her to the back of the store.

"I know they are both bad enough on their own when they get together it is horrible." Beverly agreed.

Rayna just shook her head and watched them walk into the back. She treated her entourage just like family and she was on a really personal level with most of them because the had been with her for years.

"So, that's the sister?" Liz slid up beside her while she had Beverly trying things on.

"Yeah, that's her. She's had a hard life and she's doin' the best she can. We may never truly get along, but she's my family what can I do?" Rayna replied.

"Not a damn thing. We are all one big dysfunctional family anyway. What's one more?" Liz laughed.

"That's how I look at it too. Deacon puts up with Tandy it's only right I try with Bev. The odd thing is those two actually like each other. I think they've bonded over the fact that Deacon and I are both stubborn ass mules that can't be reasoned with when it comes to each other." Rayna laughed along with her.

Beverly came out a few minutes later wearing a dark blue dress. "What do you think?"

"I think that Liz has just earned every penny that your brother is gonna pay her." Rayna smiled brightly.

"Please tell me that I can charge him for somethin' else. It would make my day. It would also teach him a lesson for a change." Liz begged.

Rayna picked up the catalog she'd been looking at and showed her an extravagant dress with rhinestones. "What do you think of that for the CMAs?"

"I think you can more than pull that off. I'll order it for you. I'll even expedite the shippin' so he has to pay more for it." Liz grinned wickedly.

"Whatever war you and my husband are in I want no part of. Which by the way your husband owes me money. He needs to learn not to make stupid bets with me." Rayna laughed.

"Is that all you people do when you're out on the road?" Beverly looked between them.

"There are long stretches spent on a tour bus if we didn't find things to bet on or games to play we wouldn't be able to stand each other. Deacon and I usually average not talkin' to each other except for on stage for four stops each tour." Rayna answered her.

"How does that work with as much as you two like each other?" Beverly inquired.

"Don't ask me that question you don't wanna know." Rayna sighed. She didn't understand why everyone was so concerned with her sex life.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Rayna and Bev finally had it out and worked through some of their issues thankfully. Next chapter we start to get into the stuff for Gunnar and Scarlett's wedding. There is some good stuff coming up with that. It's time to get all the other characters back in on the act. Until next time please review.


	70. Chapter 70

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 70

Rayna stretched her arms over her head with a yawn. She turned her head to look at her husband and she smiled when she saw him staring at her intently. "Mornin', baby,"

"Mornin', Ray," Deacon smiled back.

"What time is it?" She asked sleepily.

"It's a little after nine." He moved closer to her.

She put her hands on his cheeks and kissed him deeply. "Wait a minute aren't there two tiny people who live down the hall who normally don't let momma and daddy sleep this late? Even if momma and daddy were up until two in the morning makin' mad passionate love to each other like we did last night?"

"I thought I heard one of start fussin' earlier, but he quieted right back down." He rested his hand on the small of her back and kissed her again.

"You tryin' to go for round five?" She smiled against his lips and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I could be talked into a little mornin' sex if you're so inclined." He ran his hand along the curve of her hip.

"As much as I would love that you know we don't have the time." She pressed her pelvis against his.

He ran his other hand through her hair. "We could steal the time." He kissed her over and over.

"Mmm, honey, not only will those two boys be up any minute, but you know what this week is don't you?" She was finding it harder to resist him by the second.

"I'm gonna pretend that I don't know and see if that gets me mornin' sex." His eyes lit up with a grin.

"It's wedding week. That means our schedule is packed from now until next Saturday." She reminded him.

"That's why we need to steal the time now." He pointed out logically. He started to kiss her neck. He smirked when he kissed the spot behind her ear that drove her wild and she let out a soft moan.

She was just about to give into him when there was a knock on the door. "See? I told you." She buried her face in his chest and laughed. She pulled away from him after a moment. "Come in," It was a damn good thing that they had gone for round four in the shower and they were now both dressed.

Daphne skipped in the room still dressed in her pajamas. "Maddie sent me to wake you up." She walked around to her mom's side of the bed.

"She did? What are you two up to?" Rayna asked her.

"I can't tell you that." Daphne grinned.

Rayna pulled back the covers on the bed. "Climb on in here for a minute."

Daphne got into the bed and squeezed in between her parents. She snuggled up against Rayna. "Are you gonna get up?"

"In a minute." Rayna kissed her forehead. "Maybe I wanted to spend some time with my baby girl first." Since Teddy had gone to prison she tried to be extra attentive to Daphne's needs so she didn't feel left out.

"And maybe she got you right where I want you so I can get out of you what you and that sister of yours are up to." Deacon wrapped his arm around Daphne and kissed her cheek over and over.

"Daddy, stop, your beard tickles." Daphne giggled loudly.

He looked Rayna in the eyes. She didn't call him dad or daddy all the time, but when she did it still melted him every time. "Did you hear that, momma? My beard tickles."

"I heard it." Rayna gazed at him lovingly. It meant the world to her that he went out of his way to make Daphne feel like she was his.

"You know what that means don't ya?" His eyes twinkled.

"I know exactly what it means." Rayna agreed with him.

"What? What does it mean? What are you talking about?" Daphne looked between them.

"It means it's tickle time." Deacon explained. He and Rayna both started tickling her.

Daphne laughed loudly unable to catch her breath.

"What are you and Maddie up to?" Rayna asked her.

"I can't tell you." Daphne squealed with laughter.

"If you want the ticklin' to stop you gotta." He bargained with her.

"You have to go downstairs if you want to find out." Daphne told them.

"Is that a good enough answer for you, daddy?" Rayna locked eyes with Deacon.

"I think we can take that answer." He nodded his head. They both stopped tickling her. He got out of bed, picked Daphne up, and put her up on his shoulders.

"Let's go see what our children are up too." Rayna got out of bed and took his hand.

"They're ours so I can only imagine that they are up to no good." He joked.

Maddie had the boys in their highchairs and the table set for breakfast. The boys both had their food all over their faces and she was in the process of wiping some out of her hair.

"What is all this?" Rayna asked her.

"Daph and I fed the boys and we made breakfast." Maddie pointed to the plates of bacon, eggs, and pancakes sitting on the table.

Deacon lifted Daphne down off his shoulders. "That was so sweet of ya'll. You didn't have to do all this."

"I'm really impressed that you two managed to do all this." Rayna pulled them both into a hug.

"We had a little bit of help. We called mawmaw and she talked us through it." Daphne admitted.

"That sure was nice of her I bet she loved that." Deacon smiled. "Maddie, what happened to your hair?" He laughed.

"Your spawn happened to my hair. He decided that he was going to splash around in his food this morning. He really is Freakin' Deacon Jr." Maddie pointed at Little Deacon.

"Maddie, do not call him that. He is a baby. When you're older I will tell you why people really call your daddy that." Rayna scolded her. The origin of Deacon's nickname wasn't all that innocent. Vince had come up with it that was enough to know that it didn't come from anywhere good. It was because he fucked, fought, drank, and played guitar like a maniac.

"You are not tellin' our sweet baby girl why they really call me Freakin' Deacon. LD on the other hand the name suits him." He ruffled his namesake's hair. "That's daddy's little Outlaw."

"I'm afraid it does. He is just as bad as you ever dared to be and he's not even that old yet." Rayna shook her head.

"He'll be alright." He winked. He kissed Jaymes' head. "Mornin', Reb, were you good for Maddie and Daph?"

"Jayme peed in his own face when Maddie was changing him." Daphne thought that was the funniest thing in the world.

"He pees on things worse than Elvis. This boy is almost seven months old and he's still peeing on things just as much as he did the day we brought him home." Rayna kissed the head of the boy in question.

"He peed on you the first time you changed him, Ray. I think it was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. You were tryin' to show me how's it's done and you freaked out cause he peed in your mouth." Deacon laughed.

"I'd only ever been around girl babies I was not prepared for him to have aim like that. I should have known then that they were both gonna be bad like their daddy." Rayna winked at him.

"You wouldn't have any of us any other way." He arched his eyebrow at her.

"I wouldn't trade the five of you for anythin' in this world. I love y'all just the way you are." Rayna's heart flooded with love for her husband and children.

"Let's go have a seat at the table and dig into this food. We need to check and see if their mawmaw is a good teacher." He suggested.

"If June walked them through this you can bet that it's gonna be good." Rayna flashed him a smile when he pulled her chair out for her.

"Daddy, you need to sit down and let us serve you too." Daphne urged.

"Ok, I'm sittin'. I just wanted to pull momma's chair out for her." Deacon took his usual seat at the kitchen table.

Maddie and Daphne made up their parents' plates and then sat them in front of them.

"Be honest and tell us what you think." Maddie clasped her hands in front of her.

Deacon took the plunge first. He tried a bite of everything that was on his plate. After he finished chewing he smiled. "That's really, really good, thank you for makin' breakfast. Mawmaw sure gives good directions this tastes exactly like she made it."

Rayna followed suit. "This is so good, my girls."

"You really think so?" Daphne grinned.

"We worked really hard on this." Maddie chimed in.

"We really think so. We wouldn't lie to ya'll." Deacon told them.

"So, what are we supposed to be doing today?" Maddie asked.

"Gunnar is going to pick up his nephew and Zoey at the airport. Once that is all takin' care of we have to go have one last fitting for our dresses and the guys are all gonna go make sure that their tuxes fit. After that we have dinner. I don't think it's ever been decided what we are doing for dinner, but we will work that out. We have stuff on the books for every day this week. It's wedding week things are gonna be crazy, but fun." Rayna answered her.

"It's weddin' week." Deacon fought the urge to roll his eyes. He was happy for his niece, but he would be so glad for this wedding to be done and over with.

* * *

Gunnar's eyes shifted from the road to his rearview mirror and back again. This was without a doubt that most awkward car ride of his life. That was saying something considering he had taken a road trip with Scarlett, Beverly, and June. At least that had been more relaxed than this.

"How are you doing back there, buddy?" He asked his nephew.

"I'm doing good, Uncle Gunnar." Micah flashed him a big smile.

"We'll be at the house any minute now." Gunnar told him. The words were meant for himself more so than Micah. He needed the reassurance that he wouldn't be trapped in this car for the rest of his life. That was what it seemed like at the moment. "So, Zoey, how was the flight?" He gave a nervous chuckle.

"It was good." Zoey replied evenly from the passenger seat. She noticed how stilted and awkward things were between them.

"That's good." Gunnar's eyes went to the rearview mirror again. "Scarlett is really excited to see you again, Micah. We are both really happy that you wanted to be a part of our wedding."

"Scarlett is really nice and she makes you happy, Uncle Gunnar." Micah replied cheerfully.

"Yeah, she really is and she does." Gunnar smiled at him in the mirror. Before long he pulled into his driveway. "Here we are." He got out of the car and grabbed their bags out of the back.

Scarlett opened the front door with a smile on her face. She stooped down to hug Micah. "Hi, Micah, look at how much bigger you've gotten since we played Dallas. Your Uncle Gunnar and I are very excited to have you here. Your room is all ready for you if you wanna go up and check it out."

"Thanks, Scarlett." Micah gave her a big hug and ran off up the stairs.

"Scarlett!" Zoey squealed and opened her arms to her best friend.

"Zoey!" Scarlett exclaimed. She hugged her friend tightly while they jumped up and down like two little school girls.

"You're getting married." Zoey said in happy disbelief.

"I know; I can't believe it either." Scarlett replied.

"Why is it so loud in here? I'm pretty sure my eardrums are 'bout to protest." Will came down the stairs with a duffle bag and a suitcase.

"That would be the sound of a giddy bride and maid of honor reuniting after a long time apart." Gunnar stepped into the house. He had put Zoey's bag in the back of Scarlett's car.

"Just be thankful that they aren't both stayin' here with you all week." Will advised him.

"That most of your stuff?" Gunnar indicated the bags he was carrying out.

"It's a lot of it. I'm gonna take this stuff over to Deacon's place and then I'll take the rest of it with me when I move out." Will replied.

"You're staying for the rest of the week, right?" Gunnar asked.

"Yeah, man, I'm stickin' 'round for the rest of the week." Will assured him.

"Zoey, we're with momma and mawmaw this week. Well, mostly mawmaw, momma stays in her apartment above the garage and does whatever it is she does up there. We should get goin' we are supposed to be meetin' up with everyone and I don't wanna be late." Scarlett told her.

"It'll be just like old times. How many nights did we spend with your mawmaw stayin' up way too late and makin' way too much noise?" Zoey replied excitedly.

"And her tellin' us to be quiet before we woke the neighbors, but she never really meant it." Scarlett laughed. She grabbed her purse off the couch.

"You're just gonna leave without telling me bye?" Gunnar pouted.

Scarlett wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you I will see you later tonight. I just cleaned this house top to bottom last night. If you make a mess clean it up I don't wanna come home to a destroyed house next Saturday." She pecked his lips.

"I still say this sleeping separately for a week thing is stupid." Gunnar wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her back. "I love you too."

"You only think that 'cause it means we can't have sex for a week. Take it up with my mawmaw." Scarlett kissed him again before she pulled away.

"Well, yeah that's why I think that and because I don't wanna sleep without you." Gunnar couldn't argue with that at all.

"Gunnar, just think the next time we sleep under this roof together we will be married. Now, I've really gotta go." Scarlett waved over her shoulder at him and walked out with Zoey.

"How awkward is it that your ex is the maid of honor?" Will asked after they left.

"Will just do me a favor and don't start." Gunnar groaned.

"It's way too much fun to mess with you. I'll only back off if I know I'm really pissin' you off." Will laughed and patted him on the back.

* * *

"Oh God, what did I do to deserve this showin' of divas in my shop today?" Liz carried two bottles of champagne on ice over to the dressing area.

"You're just extremely lucky, Liz. My niece is gettin' married and Juliette is in the wedding party. I think just this once you and Deacon are in agreement about something. He doesn't want any part of all of us at the same time either." Rayna informed her.

"I guess as long as ya'll are in here you aren't out there terrorizing the rest of the world. That's also why I'm plying you with alcohol. You're always much easier to deal with after a couple of drinks." Liz replied.

"You sure know the way to my heart. This is the good stuff." Rayna picked up one of the bottles.

"I may have charged ten of those to Deacon's tab. It was the highlight of my day. Considerin' that I have quite a few measurements to take." Liz retorted.

"What did I tell you 'bout wantin' no part of whatever war you and Deacon have goin'?" Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"Your words were you don't want any part of it. I didn't wanna hear that you and Billy bet on which one of you could purposely throw all the backup singers off their mark first durin' sound check." Liz rolled her eyes.

"He should have known that I could do that a lot easier than him. And we were both really bored. It could've been much worse than that. He lost the bet and he refuses to pay up." Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"Let me just get ya'll measure so I can get you outta my shop." Liz shook her head.

"Hold that thought," Rayna dipped into her purse and tossed Maddie her keys.

"What do you want me to do with these?" Maddie asked a confused look on her face.

"One of the perks of having a teenaged daughter who can drive. I can get a little drunk right now and you can drive home. Probably won't be your first time being the sober driver, but the less I know about that the better." Rayna explained to her. She started pouring champagne and passing it around.

"I can do that." Maddie agreed.

Liz put her measuring tape around her neck and grabbed her pin cushion just in case she needed it. "I'll start with Daphne first she's the easiest one of you to deal with."

"Squirt, go on you're the good one." Rayna used Deacon's nickname for their youngest daughter.

"You hardly ever call me that only dad really calls me that." Daphne laughed.

"I know that's because he has his nicknames for everyone." Rayna took her by the shoulders and guided her into the dressing room.

"Daph, just be thankful that he didn't settle us with one of the nicknames that he gave the boys." Maddie called after her sister.

"Nicknames I've given up on tryin' to get him not to use." Rayna sighed.

"Rayna, it's just better to let Deacon John do what he's gonna do. He ain't gonna listen either way." June advised her.

"June there's nothing you can tell me about him that I don't already know." Rayna shook her head.

"It's wrong that you two can't go a minute without talkin' 'bout each other." Beverly chimed in.

"Momma, you think that's bad you oughta hear how Maddie and JC are already." Scarlett told her mother.

Maddie looked down at the floor and blushed. "Scarlett, stop it, we are not that bad."

"You two may not be that bad, but you're not much better. He was working with me on a song the other day and I know he got ten texts in the span of two minutes from you." Sadie informed her. Scarlett had gotten her and Juliette to be bridesmaids because she needed to be even with Gunnar's number of groomsmen.

"I will take pity on you and change the subject." Juliette stepped in. "Scarlett, are you gettin' nervous yet?"

"No, I think Gunnar is nervous enough for the both of us. I don't have time to be nervous 'cause I have to keep him calm." Scarlett chuckled.

"When Avery and I got married it was so spur of the moment that neither of us had time to be nervous. We just did it and that was that." Juliette snapped her fingers.

"Maybe he will get better with havin' his nephew to focus on now." Scarlett mused.

"Are you sure you don't want me to have you kidnapped?" Zoey asked her.

"Stop it, you sound as bad as Will." Scarlett scolded her playfully.

"When are you gonna learn that there is nothing that Will and Jimmy won't do to get under Gunnar's skin?" Rayna asked her.

"I'm well aware of that. I don't even question it anymore. Those three pick at each other and it gets much worse when Rhett and Mack are around too." Scarlett didn't know when all those guys were going to grow up, but she didn't look for it to happen anytime soon.

Rayna pulled out her phone when she heard it chime. She checked her texts and saw that she had a picture message from Deacon. She opened it and smiled when she saw him dressed in his suit. She showed it to Scarlett. "This is from your uncle he wants to make sure that you approve of this suit before he buys it."

Scarlett looked at the picture. "That suit looks really good on him. It's perfect. I'll say this though as long as he doesn't plan on walkin' me down the aisle in his jeans and flannel I'll be happy."

"If he could get away with it he would." Rayna retorted.

A little while later Rhett came into the shop he walked over to Rayna and handed her something. "That's from Deacon he said that he forgot to give it to you and that he didn't want to give Liz one more reason to be gunnin' for him."

"Thanks for bringin' this over. I can't believe I let him forget to give me a check." Rayna wasn't surprised that she'd forgotten with everything that they had going on.

"Oh my God, Scarlett, who is that?" Zoey whispered when she caught sight of Rhett.

"That's my Uncle Rhett he's a year younger than we are. It's a long complicated story and I will explain it to you later." Scarlett whispered back.

"I don't really care that he's your uncle he is hot." Zoey replied.

"Zoey, don't be gross he looks exactly like Uncle Deacon. The thoughts that puts in my head are wrong." Scarlett got a disgusted look on her face.

"Well, now that you mention it." Zoey said just to get under her skin.

"I'll let you fight with Rayna on that one." Scarlett rolled her eyes.

"And Deacon also said since it seems to be out of the realm of possibility for you ladies to all come to the same decision 'bout what to do for dinner he's takin' the choice out of your hands. He's gonna go to the grocery store and get the stuff to have a big barbeque back at your place. He also said somethin' to the effect of just let him have this since you're forcin' him to go to the country club tomorrow for this shower you're throwin'. Please remember that those were my brother's words and not mine, so when it comes time for you to get pissed kill him and not me." Rhett added.

"That actually works out perfectly. I'm gonna pretend like he didn't say anythin' else after that." Rayna smiled at him.

"One of these days one of you two is gonna kill me for the things you have me say to each other." Rhett groaned.

"We really have to stop treatin' you like our go between when we can't get ahold of each other. Although that wouldn't happen if you would take the tryout with my daddy's team. You are my brother-in-law do you know how well he'd treat you based on that alone? That's before you even get into your obvious talent. I found the last scouting report on you and I emailed it to him. You're gonna meet him at some point this week and I want you two to talk." Rayna stared him down.

Rhett blushed bright red. "I'll get 'round to it, but Bev and Miss June need me at the Mile Marker. I don't know what they'd do without me." He made an excuse.

"They'd find someone else to take your place. I'm gonna ride your ass 'til you do this. Don't make me get your brother to fire you." Rayna threatened him.

"Maddie, a little help here." Rhett tried to hide behind his niece.

"Nope, I'm not getting in the middle of this. I have to deal with her over stuff of my own. I'm not letting her at me if I don't have to. Just think I have to live with her you don't." Maddie bowed out of that argument.

"Rhett, schedule the tryout or I'll do it for you." Rayna gave him one last word of warning. Deacon had made a promise to his brother's mother on her deathbed and she intended to help him keep it.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	71. Chapter 71

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 71

By the time all the girls got back to Rayna and Deacon's ranch the guys already had the grills fired up and drinks iced down. Maddie went upstairs to her room and changed into a pair of cutoff shorts and a tank top. She walked down to the barn where JC was chopping wood with his shirt off. She bit her lip as she watched the muscles in his back and chest ripple every time he swung the ax.

"You know mom told dad to buy a wood splitter for that, but now I'm really glad he didn't listen." She made her presence known.

"Oh, he listened. He just asked me to spilt up enough wood to start a nice bonfire tonight. The rest of it he's gonna use the splitter for to get it done in the timeframe she asked him to." He put the ax down and opened his arms to her.

She walked over and put her arms around his neck. "I just like seeing you all sweaty without a shirt on."

"I like seein' you in exactly what you got on right now." He put his hands on her hips and kissed her.

"I was hoping I'd have the effect on you." She pushed her hips flush to his and she smirked against his lips when she felt his growing erection in the front of his jeans.

"Cricket, your daddy is just up on the back patio right now you're gonna get us in trouble." He warned her.

"I'm just asking you to climb up in the hayloft make out with your girlfriend I didn't know that was a hardship for you." She teased him.

"I recognize the tone in your voice and the look on your face right now. What you're wantin' is a little more than makin' out. You want that other stuff that we've started doin' recently. You want the stuff where I touch you in ways that are far from pure." He dropped his hands to her ass and cupped it.

"Maybe I'm tired of you having all the fun and I want to do a little touching of my own today. Everyone else is occupied I don't think they will miss us for a little while." She rested her hand on his bulge and squeezed it. They hadn't gone all the way yet, but he had done things to her that had opened her up to a whole new world. He was so sweet and patient with her. He always asked her permission and if she liked what he was doing to her. He was letting her work her way up to sex.

"Jesus, Maddie, you're tryin' to get me killed. I can take a ten-minute break, but we have to be quiet. Get your sweet little ass up in that hayloft and get outta them shorts." He was powerless to tell her no. Especially with the way he was aching to be touched. It took every ounce of his willpower to let her be the one to set the pace, but he knew it was what she needed to feel safe.

"That's what I thought." She unbuttoned her shorts and climbed the ladder up to the hayloft.

He just shook his head and climbed up after her. Messing around with her could very well be the death of him, but at least he would die a happy man. "Darlin', only a stupid man turns down an offer from a girl as pretty as you." He grabbed her around the waist and spun her around before he laid her gently on the floor.

"Only a stupid man admits that he's been getting other offers to his girlfriend when she's about to get half naked for him." Maddie laughed and started undoing his belt.

"Only half naked? I seem to recall that you like for me to do things with my mouth in the general area of your chest." JC grinned.

She kissed him to shut him up.

* * *

"Do I want to know how much Liz's bill was?" Deacon asked Rayna when she slid up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Baby, you don't wanna ask that question, but it's worth it to see our niece so happy." She kissed the back of his neck.

"Yeah it is. I still remember her bein' a little bitty thing sleepin' in between us." He smiled fondly.

"So can I, babe." She rested her chin on his shoulder. "Now, will you please tell me how to work the heater on the pool so we can get in?"

"I already turned the heater on. It's roughly the same temperature as bathwater. Will and Rhett may be jumpin' into the lake later, but I can't swear to that. They are all crazy I don't pay them much mind when they get to talkin'." He replied.

"If that's the case I'm gonna go throw my swimsuit on and get the boys changed. I'm a little surprised that Maddie isn't already laying out here by the pool with her headphones in." She told him.

"I have Jimmy down at the barn splittin' wood. She walked out and headed right in that direction. Go figure." He shrugged helplessly.

"Deacon, they are two hormonal teenagers. They are probably down there making out or something. It's the or something part that has me worried. Our little girl, she likes to think she's more grown up than is actually the case. I know what you were talking me into at that age. She's not as mature as I was." Rayna pointed out to him.

"What do you want me to do, Ray? Stick her in a chastity belt and not let her out 'til she's fifty? Believe me I've thought 'bout it and I've come to the conclusion that it will only make things worse. I think that this is just a storm that you and I are gonna have to ride out." Deacon placed a kiss on her forehead.

"I had a feeling you were gonna say something to me like that. I should really start listening to my own advice to myself." She sighed.

"I left the boys trunks out in their room for you." He cupped her cheek gently. He knew how hard this was on her, because it was hard on him too.

"Uncle Deacon, can I talk to you 'bout somethin' for a second?" Scarlett slid up next to her uncle when Rayna went into the house.

"I've always got time for my favorite niece you know that. What's on your mind?" He asked her.

"I have to ask you somethin' that I feel horrible for even askin' ya after all you done for me. Not just payin' for this weddin', but the things you done my whole life and you didn't have to. Would it bother you if I invited Paul?" She rattled off.

"You're one of my girls, Scarlett, I'd do anythin' in this world for you. You never gotta thank me for that. It's your weddin' that's up to you. I can behave myself if he can behave himself. I imagine it'd mean a lot to your momma to have him there. If you wanna ask him, I ain't gonna throw no fit 'bout it." He said after he took a deep breath.

"Uncle Deacon, you really are the best and none of us deserve you." She smiled brightly and kissed his cheek.

"Tell me somethin' I don't know." He laughed.

* * *

Rayna sat up late in her office getting some work caught up that needed to be done for Highway 65 before she was out of the office for most of the week. Right now she was mostly catching up on listening to demos. She looked over to the doorway when she sensed another presence in the room with her. She paused the music she was listening to and smiled. "Hey, baby girl, I didn't wake you did I?"

"No, I haven't gone to sleep yet. I'm a little surprised that you're still up." Maddie walked in and sat on the couch her parents kept in there.

"It looks like you have something mind. You wanna tell me what it is?" Rayna asked.

"You said that I could come to you and dad to talk about anything that no topic was off limits. And that I wouldn't get in trouble if I were just honest with you." Maddie replied.

"That's right daddy and I have both said that. We rather you tell us the truth so we can lie for you if need be. It seems to me you'd feel a lot better if you just said it." Rayna confirmed.

"You were my age when you started dating dad. How did you know that he was the guy that you wanted to go all the way with?" Maddie just forced the words out of her mouth.

"This is that talk. I need to be a little numb for this talk." Rayna reached into the filing cabinet on her side of the office and pulled out a bottle of whiskey and a glass. She poured herself a drink. "Don't tell your father that I keep that in here." She got up and sat next to her daughter. "Ask me that question again." She sipped her drink.

"How did you know that you wanted to go all the way with dad and that he was the one you wanted to take that step with?" Maddie repeated the question.

Rayna stared at her thoughtfully for a moment before she answered. "He was so patient, gentle, loving and kind with me. He was older and more experienced than I was. I'd had one or two boyfriends before him and I didn't feel the constant pressure with him that I got from boys my age. He always left it up to me what we did or didn't do. He let me take the wheel and he stuck it out for the ride with me. He never pushed me farther than I was willing to go at any given moment. And when the time was right to go all the way I just knew, Maddie. I felt safe with him and I knew he would never hurt me that way. I can't explain how I knew that I just knew."

"That's fair enough I guess." Maddie pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them.

"Is that something that you think you might be ready for with JC?" Rayna asked her.

"I think so, I don't know. I'm just not really sure. I know that he makes me feel things that I've never felt before. We connect on a really deep level." Maddie admitted.

"Opening yourself up like that and letting the other person in that far is really scary. You will second guess your decision and change your mind at least a hundred different times. The important thing is that you and your partner are on the same page when it comes to that. If he's being patient and not expecting anything from you then neither of you has anything to worry about and there's no need to rush into anything. And there are other things that you can do that are just as satisfying as sex without going there." Rayna cleared her throat and took a drink to hide her embarrassment.

Maddie blushed and buried her face in her hands. "Mom, I know. I don't think that this talk needs to go in that direction it will only embarrass both of us."

"I agree. I do have to say this though. When you both decide that the time is right for the love of God, Maddie, use protection. That means make sure that he wears a condom. And if you want we can get you an appointment and get you on birth control. Still you have to wait a month for that to be effective and I am a prime example that it doesn't always work. I had three kids while on birth control. With you I know that I wasn't always the best about remembering to take it. I'm still not really sure what happened with the boys though." Rayna drained her glass and refilled it.

"I know all of that too, mom. I really could have gone without hearing about your birth control issues. I think I just wanted someone to talk to. Thank you for having this conversation with me no matter how uncomfortable it is for both of us." Maddie's face was bright red.

"I'm your momma that's what I'm here for. You can talk to me about anything. It may be embarrassing for both of us, but we can struggle through it together. I don't want you to be afraid to tell me things. I want us to be close. I told you before by the time I was this age your mawmaw was already gone and I had to face things like this on my own." Rayna put her hand on her daughter's knee.

"I know, mom, and I'm glad that I have you here to talk to." Maddie leaned against her mother.

Rayna drained her glass in one drink. "Now that I have the liquid courage I have something I need to ask you. You and Jimmy don't do anything when daddy and I leave you two alone to babysit everyone do you?"

"God no, mom. First of all, Daphne won't allow that if JC is here she isn't far behind for long. She loves him and I don't mind her tagging along. I actually really like it that they get along so well. The boys both really like him too." Maddie laughed a little.

"You did get really lucky that way. Aunt Tandy didn't like your daddy for a long time. At first because she never thought he was good enough for me and then later because of his drinking. They get along for the most part now I've just come to accept that they speak to each other in insults." Rayna chuckled.

"Sometimes I think that maybe JC is too perfect and I'm not good enough for him." Maddie told her.

"That's just not true, sweet girl, he's as lucky to have you as you are to have him. Don't ever let anyone tell you any different. Get you some confidence, girl. In this light you remind me of your daddy. He was so world weary and broken down when I met him. It was because Paul always told him he'd never be anything and that got to him sometimes. So, I'm telling you that you're more precious than you will ever be able to comprehend." Rayna rubbed her cheek gently.

"You're my mom you have to say that. Even I don't know how someone that looks like me scored someone as hot as him." Maddie replied meekly.

Rayna got up and took a picture frame off of a bookshelf. She sat down next to Maddie again and showed it to her. "Now, I want you to tell me what your incredibly handsome daddy was doing with someone who looked as awkward as I did. The answer to that is love is blind and from the moment I met him that's what it was. When two people care that much about each other it's not just about what's on the outside. What's on the inside matters just as much. If you don't feel like you can look your worst with a person and have them still love you then it isn't real."

"You and dad both give the best advice." Maddie laid her head on her shoulder.

"You don't get to be as old as we are without learning a thing or two. Not that we are that old despite what you might think." Rayna teased her.

"But seriously, mom, what were you thinking with that hair?" Maddie laughed.

"Hey, it was the eighties be nice. Everyone was wearing their hair that way. And in the nineties I'm not sure that your daddy owned a shirt with sleeves on it." Rayna rolled her eyes playfully. They both busted out giggling.

"And what exactly is goin' on in here?" Deacon shuffled into the room.

"Nothing at all. I would ask you what you're doing up, but I'm sure your insomnia is acting up." Rayna told him.

He caught sight of the picture she was holding. "Look at those babies. We were so young there."

"We were, but I like to think we got better with age." Rayna replied.

"You did anyway." He smiled.

"Deac, makes the face that dad is making in that picture." Maddie observed.

"He does. Your daddy couldn't deny those boys if he wanted to. With you I see myself in some of your expressions at least, but they are all him." Rayna agreed.

"I'm just gonna go back to bed and leave you two to whatever it is you're doin'." He shook his head, but he was smiling. He was glad to see them finally getting along again.

* * *

Rhett pulled at the tie around his neck as he looked around the banquet room at the country club. "Deacon, do you ever feel out of place like they are gonna detect the backwoods Mississippi on you and call you a fraud?"

"Not so much anymore, but I used to. Ray is from this world and she hates this as much as I do. She doesn't really fit in here either. I think that the women in our life went a little overboard with this weddin'." Deacon clapped him on the back and chuckled.

"I knew I liked her for a reason." Rhett grinned.

"I'd like her even more if she weren't the one who had insisted on this." Deacon grumbled.

"Deacon, don't act like you don't think everythin' she does is perfect." Beverly walked over to her brothers.

"Bev, please not today. I can't handle your feud with my wife and keep myself sane right now." Deacon begged her.

"I will have you know that we are no longer fightin'." Beverly informed him.

"That's a first. Rhett, you better make note of that. It is rare that our sister and my wife ever get along." Deacon cracked.

"I'm ain't gettin' into this. I gotta conserve my energy. Rayna asked me and Jimmy to go out to the ranch today and help the work crew she hired start settin' up for the weddin'." Rhett shook his head.

"That's not actually what she wants you there for. She wants you and Jimmy there and watch them and make sure they do a good job, so she doesn't have to do it. The queen has far more important things to do with her time." Deacon laughed.

"Damn right she does. We have plans this afternoon with Tandy and momma." Beverly told him.

"I don't know what momma did to deserve that, but it's better she's gotta deal with all of you than for it to be me." Deacon replied.

"You shouldn't go wishin' that on Miss June she has enough to say grace over. She works her ass off while our sister here stands behind the bar and looks pretty." Rhett tried to get under Beverly's skin.

"Just for that I'm no longer on speakin' terms with either one of you." Beverly glared at her brothers.

"Give it five minutes you'll be talkin' to me again when you need somethin' from me." Deacon just rolled his eyes.

"Deacon, there you are. I've only been lookin' all over for you. I thought you might be hiding out back talking to the staff like the last time I brought you here." Rayna slipped her arm around his waist.

"I was signin' CDs that night. I wasn't just hangin' out with the staff to be anti-social." Deacon defended himself.

"Whatever you say, sugar." Rayna grinned at him. "You ready to make this introduction?"

"I'm ready, I ain't the one we should be worried 'bout though." Deacon inclined his head in Rhett's direction.

"Daddy has instructions to be on his best behavior and not to try anything funny." Rayna assured him. "Bev, I'm gonna borrow your brothers for a little while I'm bring 'em back."

"You can keep 'em for all I care they're both trouble." Beverly retorted.

"Rhett, be firm, but polite. Lamar Wyatt is a very imposin' figure, but you don't back down from him. He will take that as a sign of weakness and walk right over you. He won't admit to it, but he admires people who dare stand up to him. You've got this." Deacon coached him.

"At the same time don't be afraid to compliment him, but don't make it seem like you're kissin' his ass. He has enough people to do that for him. You don't need to stroke his ego." Rayna added.

"How 'bout you two just let me talk to the man 'fore you get in my head and make me nervous?" Rhett suggested.

"I think he got the point of what you were tryin' to tell him just fine." Beverly laughed.

"Bev, we were just tryin' to give the boy the lay of the land." Deacon replied.

"Not everyone gets along with my father as well as your momma does." Rayna chimed in. She waved Lamar over.

Lamar walked over in all his glory. "Beverly, it's good to see you again." He kissed her cheek.

"It's good to see you too, Lamar." Beverly smiled at him.

"Deacon," Lamar nodded at his son-in-law.

"Lamar," Deacon returned the greeting in kind.

"Daddy, I have someone that I want you to meet." Rayna put her hand on Rhett's shoulder. "Rhett Claybourne, this is my father Lamar Wyatt. Daddy, this is Deacon's baby brother Rhett."

"Nice to meet you, sir." Rhett offered Lamar his hand.

"The pleasure here is all mine. It's nice to finally have a face to put to those amazing stats of yours. I think that you and I have a bright future together." Lamar shook his hand.

"I would like that a lot. Workin' with a man of your stature would be an honor for a Mississippi boy like me." Rhett laid it on thick.

"I'll tell you what. I know that you're pretty busy all this week, but next week we will get you out on a baseball field and see what you can do. You're too well rounded a player to stick you at pitcher and only use you once every few days. From what I've seen you're also a very good outfielder." Lamar replied.

"I play a pretty mean third base too." Rhett added.

Lamar produced a business card and handed it to the young man. "Call that number tomorrow and set up a meeting with my secretary at your earliest convenience. You are my top priority right now and I will do whatever it takes to get you signed."

"I will be sure to do that. Thank you for your interest." Rhett gave him a charming smile.

"I'm only ever interested in the best. You should go buy yourself a bigger hat, because I consider you the best of the best." Lamar clapped him on the back.

"Daddy, he has a few free minutes right now. Why don't you two go talk a little?" Rayna suggested.

"Rhett, do you like good whiskey?" Lamar asked him.

"I'm a Claybourne the only thing I like better than whiskey is the whole bottle." Rhett joked.

"You and I are going to get along just fine then." Lamar put his hand on his shoulder and guided him over to the bar.

"How come I feel like we just sent my baby brother into the lion's den unprotected?" Deacon arched his eyebrow.

"Because we pretty much just threw him into the deep end of the pool and told him to swim. He has the best chance of getting along with daddy and having an honest conversation with him if it's just the two of them." Rayna replied.

"I hope we know what we're doin' and we're not makin' a big mistake. I don't think that kid could take a fall right now." Deacon bit his lip.

"Relax, babe, we are protecting him and that's the best thing we can do to help him right now. I know that you and daddy have a rocky history together, but he's changed. Rhett is family and daddy isn't gonna take the risk of screwing him over when his whole stadium deal hinges on me playing nice with him." Rayna assured him.

"I promised his mother on her death bed that I would always look out for him. I don't want to break that promise." Deacon explained to her.

"I know that, Deacon, I'm helping you keep that promise. You know that together you and I can do the impossible." Rayna slipped her hand into his.

Deacon laced their fingers together and smiled. "We do make a pretty great team. Not to mention we make magic together."

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Scarlett, I have a serious question for you." Juliette said.

"What's that?" Scarlett asked.

"If ya'll are gettin' married aren't you gonna have to change the name of your band?" Juliette wondered out loud.

"We haven't really thought about that. I guess we will just stay the Exes. We already have done all our branding and stuff as the Exes, so it makes sense to keep the name." Scarlett replied.

"Ya'll keep up with this hot streak you're on and I just may have to have you open for me once I get off of Luke's tour." Juliette threw out there.

"Juliette, that's real nice of you, but you don't have to do that." Scarlett told her gratefully.

"I don't have to I want to. We are one big family at Highway Sixty-five and if we don't look out for each other no one else is gonna. Besides if I pick my openers Rayna won't have a chance to stick me with Layla." Juliette's motives weren't exactly pure, but then again if she didn't come up with a scheme every now and then the world wouldn't know what to do with her.

"At least you're honest." Scarlett chuckled.

"I'm really glad that you had a chance to work things out with your momma before it was too late. I better than anyone understand what you went through and I should've given you the night off when you asked for it." Juliette came as close as she could to apologizing.

"Thank you for sayin' that. It wasn't your fault though; it was on me. I knew that I couldn't handle that, but still I pushed through it and tried. It all worked out the way it was supposed to in the end. If not for that then maybe Gunnar and I wouldn't be back together much less gettin' married in a few days." Scarlett gave her a small smile.

"If you ever need anythin' at all don't hesitate to come to me. The women on this label have to stick together. With the exception of Deacon all the guys are a bunch of juveniles. These boys can't be in the same room without startin' in on each other." Juliette winked and laughed.

"At least Avery half way behaves himself. JC, Will, and Gunnar together is somethin' I would wish on no one. It's so much worse when Rhett and Mack are around. It's like they are all overgrown puppies or somethin'.' Scarlett shook her head.

"But, we wouldn't have 'em any other way." Juliette observed. She watched the guys in question interact with each other with a smile on her face.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. We are getting closer to the wedding and trust me you don't want to miss that for the world. Maddie and JC are growing closer by the second. Until next time please review.


	72. Chapter 72

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. For anyone interested in linking up with me anywhere else my Twitter username is TBorah89 as well. I look forward to hearing from you.

* * *

Chapter 72

"Stop, it doesn't sound right." Maddie yanked her headphones off and threw them down on the music stand in front of her. They were in the studio working on their song for Scarlett and Gunnar's wedding. Rayna hadn't been kidding when she dubbed it Wedding Week. Everyone's attention was devoted to the upcoming nuptials.

"What's the problem, Cricket?" JC slipped his headphones around his neck.

"I don't know I wish I did. If I knew we could fix it. We need this song down by Friday, it's Tuesday. Unless something changes I don't see that happening unless we pull an all nighter." She groaned loudly.

"I think that the violins are throwin' you off. You're not used to those instruments and that's the issue." He said thoughtfully.

"I have to be able to sing with the violins because that's how we're gonna do it the day of the wedding." She grumbled.

"Hey, we are gonna get it down. This is only a problem, because you're used to just hearin' the guitar cause that's how we wrote it." He put his hands on her shoulders to relax her.

"It's never been this hard before. This normally comes a lot easier for me." She leaned against him.

"It's not all fun and games. It's gonna be hard a lot of the time, but you have to dig deep and keep pushin' through it. That's where all the really great songs come from." He rubbed her shoulders.

She pushed her ass against his hips and rubbed against his crotch. "Mmm, see this right here is why I say you're too perfect."

"You better watch yourself, girl. We are in public you can't be doin' that." He pulled his hips away from hers.

She brought her arm up over her head and wrapped it around his neck. "I just want you all the time, babe, and we haven't even gone all the way yet." She pressed her hips against his again.

"You keep this up and you're gonna make me forget myself, Cricket." He ground his growing bulge against her ass.

"I wish you would." She turned and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"You're the reason we never get any work done." He dropped his hands to her hips and kissed her.

"I know, but it's so worth it." She pulled away long enough to speak and then started kissing him in earnest.

"Babe, I don't know why you can't just relax and stop being such a control freak. I think they know how to record a song without you. It's pretty much all they do with their free time." Tandy told Rayna as they walked into the mixing booth.

"I'm not bein' a control freak, I'm just checkin' up on 'em. They are teenagers they don't always do as they are told right away. I wouldn't normally be this up in their personal space if they weren't on a pretty tight deadline." Rayna replied.

"You need to listen to what I'm about to say because chances are you will never hear these words leave my mouth again, but you were right." Tandy rolled her eyes in disgust and pointed to the sound booth where JC and Maddie were making out. "They are just as bad as you and Deacon ever dared to be."

"Oh, mother of God. They lose all self control when they are around each other. They are two sleazy ass little hormone balls. And Deacon and I are at least married." Rayna sighed in exasperation. She pressed the intercom button. "James Clay, please get your tongue out of my daughter's mouth. Madison Miranda, at least play hard to get. You ain't gotta be all wrapped around him like a cheap coat."

Maddie and JC had the decency to pull away from each other looking contrite.

"God, mom, can you not?" Maddie begged. Her cheeks were bright red.

"We got a little carried away." JC looked down at the floor.

"More like a lot carried away. For a minute there I wasn't sure that I wasn't looking at Rayna and Deacon and I also wasn't sure I wasn't going to have to hose you two off." Tandy added.

"Mom, does she come with an off switch?" Maddie groaned. She knew that her aunt would never let her live this down.

"Just be thankful it was us that caught you and not your daddy. Jimmy would be running for his life right now." Rayna winked at her. "How's the song coming?"

"It would be comin' a lot better if someone wasn't havin' a diva dip that I had to calm her down from." JC replied.

"Oh yeah, it looked like that was a real hardship for you." Tandy quipped.

"I agree with Cricket. How do you get her to be quiet?" JC asked.

"If either of you two figures that out I will make you the label star and cater to your every whim." Rayna shrugged her shoulders. She loved her sister, but she would love to kill her at times. She would love to kill her a lot of the time, actually.

"Challenge accepted." JC grinned so that his dimples showed.

"Lord, boy, times like this I swear I'm lookin' right at your daddy." Rayna laughed.

"What can I say? I've got good genes." JC retorted.

"Seriously, how is the song coming?" Rayna asked again.

"I can't get used to the violins on the track. For whatever reason they are giving me a hell of a time and I keep missing my marks." Maddie answered her.

"Ok, I'm coming in there. I will show you how this is done. The first song I used something other than a guitar for I had trouble too." Rayna joined them in the sound booth.

* * *

"I'd say that Daphne and Micah hit it off pretty well." Gunnar took a sip of his beer.

"Daphne gets along with everyone I know you're not surprised by that." Will replied.

"I'm not surprised at all I'm just happy that they don't hate each other since they are walking down the aisle together." Gunnar corrected him. The whole wedding party was gathered at his and Scarlett's place to escape the parents for a little bit.

"What else do Rayna and Tandy have slated for weddin' week that we need to worry 'bout?" Will asked him.

"As I've been told it's not our job to know that before hand it's just our job to show up." Gunnar retorted.

"I see that Tandy got you cornered and gave you a pep talk to. I had the misfortune to run into her yesterday and she gave me a lecture about being on my best behavior." Avery slid up beside them.

"She hasn't gotten to me yet, but only because I've made it a point to avoid her." Will threw out there.

"If only I were that lucky. Her and Rayna walked in on Maddie and me makin' out in the studio today. I don't think she's gonna let us forget that any time soon." JC added to the conversation.

"From the way I've heard her and Sadie carry on about what Rayna and Deacon get up to I think that's a safe bet." Rhett agreed.

Will broke out with a goofy grin on his face when the front door opened and Mack walked in. "There you are."

Mack walked over and put his hand on Will's shoulder. "Sorry I'm late, babe. Practice ran late today."

"It's no problem. I think that we all needed a reprieve from you and Rhett talkin' sports for a little while." Will squeezed his hand.

"We gave them one job and what do they do? They stand around in a circle drinkin' beer and let those babies do whatever they want." Juliette shook her head as she watched the guys from the kitchen.

"In their defense it's not like they are gonna do much. Might have to worry about one of the boys sticking a penny in a light socket, but I think we still have awhile before we have to worry about that yet." Sadie chuckled.

"Those boys get half their DNA from my Uncle Deacon nothin' they did would surprise me." Scarlett chimed in. Little Deacon and Jaymes were the ring bearers and Cadence was the flower girl.

"Those boys are tame compared to their daddy if any of the stories Mawmaw June used to tell about Deacon are true." Zoey commented.

"They aren't big enough to do much damage yet, but believe me when I say they are well on their way to being bad." Maddie scoffed.

Scarlett studied her cousin for a minute. "Maddie, what is that thing on your neck?"

Maddie blushed and covered her neck with her hand. She was going to kill JC later. "I burned myself with a curling iron."

"The lie that every woman has told as least once in her life to keep her daddy from killin' her boyfriend." Sadie laughed.

"Are you and the cowboy knockin' boots?" Juliette tried to get her to dish the details.

Maddie's blush deepened. "Can you guys stop? It's nothing like that."

"It's exactly like that." Zoey corrected her.

"Maddie, we were sixteen once too. We know what goes on between boys and girls at that age." Scarlett teased her.

"If you all must know then no we haven't done exactly that yet. We've done other things that were almost that, but not that." Maddie mumbled quickly.

"Well, is he any good?" Juliette inquired.

"I don't have anything to compare it to, but I'd have to say he's pretty good." Maddie hid her face.

"My baby cousin is growin' up." Scarlett pretended to wipe away a tear.

"Why does everyone in this family have to be so embarrassing?" Maddie groaned loudly.

"It's part of our charm. One day you will be old enough to give it right back to us." Sadie told her.

"Avery! Will you get her before she damages Jayme's masculine pride by beatin' him up?" Juliette called out to her husband when she saw Cadence and Jayme basically wrestling.

JC moved to pick her up before Avery could reply. "I've got for ya." He bent down and scooped her up. "Hey there, Catydid, you can't be beatin' up on Jayme no matter what he does to you."

If it were possible Maddie's face flushed even more than it had before. Seeing her boyfriend like that with the baby just did something for her. She didn't know what was with her when it came to him, but whatever it was she had it bad.

"You just got all warm and fuzzy in places that are unmentionable didn't you?" Juliette teased her.

"Why are all of you so obsessed with everyone else's sex life? I don't think it's normal at all." Maddie just shook her head.

"Maddie, keep your voice down. I don't wanna have to explain to Uncle Deacon and Aunt Rayna or Micah's grandparents why we had to tell them what sex is." Scarlett whispered harshly.

"I will change the subject slightly. How is it that your uncle is so damn hot?" Zoey all, but drooled over Rhett.

"Zoey, do you want me to pass him a note that says check yes or no?" Scarlett rolled her eyes.

"No, I can take care of that part myself. As your very single maid of honor it's only your job to provide wedding sex for me I can take care of reeling him in." Zoey smirked.

"Yeah, I'm just gonna pretend that I didn't hear that. Too bad that you're partnered with Will and Sadie is paired up with Rhett." Scarlett retorted.

"I think I can come up with a way around that." Zoey assured her.

"Sadie, you may have to protect my uncle's virtue from my best friend." Scarlett shook her head.

"Don't worry Rhett will be safe with me. I won't bite unless he wants me to." Sadie assured her laughingly.

"I'm sure this has been pointed out to you before, but Rhett looks exactly like Deacon. Does that mean you have a thing for the big brother too?" Juliette wondered out loud.

"For the sake of me not hearing anything I don't want to hear please don't answer that." Maddie begged.

* * *

Scarlett and Zoey sat out on the front porch of June's house. They were serenaded by the sound of crickets on the night air. They each held a drink in their hand.

"I can't believe that this is actually happening we used to talk about this all the time when we were little girls and now you're getting married." Zoey commented.

"I can't believe that I'm gettin' married in two days. As long as it took us to get here with everythin' that stood in our way. It seems like it's been a forever and so fast all at the same time." Scarlett replied.

"I was one of those things standing in your way. I don't think I've ever told you how sorry I am for breaking girl code and sleeping with your ex." Zoey apologized.

"I didn't want him anymore. I had no right to get mad at you for wantin' to be with him. I was just more hurt that ya'll didn't tell me." Scarlett sipped her drink.

"You did still want him you just wouldn't admit to it." Zoey called her out.

"I didn't say that we always have the healthiest relationship in the world. I just said that he makes me happier than anythin' that I've ever known in my life." Scarlett replied.

"Just think this time Saturday night you're gonna Mrs. Gunnar Scott." Zoey smiled.

"I know and I can't wait." Scarlett squealed.

"You're getting married to a really great guy. Even though he has the ability to make even the most comfortable situation awkward." Zoey teased her.

"I know. How was the ride from the airport with him? I haven't had the chance to ask you about it yet. My crazy aunt and her sister have had us all so busy the last few days we haven't had time to talk." Scarlett asked.

"About as awkward as you'd imagine. He didn't look at me the entire time and he made boring small talk. He did his very best to keep his eyes on the road and Micah the whole way home." Zoey laughed.

"That sounds like him. I tell him all the time to stop makin' everythin' so awkward, but I don't think he can help himself." Scarlett shook her head.

"I have to ask because I'm curious. What's it like having Rayna Jaymes for an aunt?" Zoey took a drink.

"That is only one of the most amazin' things in the world. She treats me just like I'm one of her girls. She always has. That also means I have to be at the top of my game or she'll call me on it before she would any other artist. I mean I remember bein' a little girl and sleepin' in between her and Uncle Deacon when I stayed with them. There's a little more pressure on me, cause I don't wanna let her down again. It was her and Uncle Deacon that helped ease me back into things. They both pushed me to get back out there. I think I just needed someone else on that stage with me to feel safe." Scarlett replied.

"You kinda lucked out that way didn't you?" Zoey asked.

"I didn't get the contract because of Uncle Deacon. He wouldn't ask that of her and she wouldn't do that for him. She wouldn't do that for him unless I was any good anyway." Scarlett added the last part of the sentence when Zoey gave her a look. They both broke out in a fit of giggles.

The screen door banged open. "I don't know how many times I have to tell ya'll girls to keep it down so I can watch my stories. I swear if I didn't know any better I'd think we were back in Natchez almost a decade ago when you two were in high school." June scolded the two young women, but there was a smile on her face.

"Mawmaw, you have your soaps on your DVR you can pause them if we get too loud for you." Scarlett joked with her.

June shook her head at them playfully. "Well, look at you two out here drinkin' and makin' all kinda racket when you know that we have to be up early in the mornin' to go to the spa before the rehearsal dinner. I just don't know what I'm gonna do with ya'll. Grown women and you still don't know how to behave." She took Zoey's drink and took a healthy swallow. "My ex husband and son aren't the only two Claybourne's that know how to drink." She winked at them.

"Damn, mawmaw, look at you throw down." Scarlett laughed.

"I used to do my drinkin' behind closed doors so Bev and Deacon John didn't know. Livin' with Paul was reason enough for me to drink on occasion, but I didn't want my babies to see me like that. They saw it enough from their father. Though I sheltered them from a lot of things. Like the fact that there should be a sibling in between Deacon and Rhett." June replied.

"How come you never said anythin' before?" Zoey asked her. She was just like a grandmother to her.

"Because I didn't want to give Deacon John one more thing to feel bad 'bout. He was only five or six at the time and lord knows he would have gone after Paul. I couldn't have him hurt my baby. To this day if he found out that his daddy beat me badly enough to make me have a miscarriage he would kill him. Paul would always eventually get the better of him while he was a little bitty thing, but Deacon would grab him an equalizer. I can't tell you the number of times he went after him with a baseball bat." June chuckled dryly. It wasn't a laughing matter, but if she didn't laugh she would cry.

"Mawmaw, I think that you have to be the strongest woman I've ever met." Scarlett marveled.

"I ain't strong, I just did what I had to, to survive that man." June replied.

* * *

Rayna had booked them the entire spa for the day before the rehearsal dinner. She wanted everyone to be rested and relaxed. Weddings could be very stressful on everyone involved.

"Babe, this has to be the best idea that you've had in a long time. Does your husband know that you're adding this to his bill?" Tandy sipped a glass of champagne.

"Deacon drew the line at this. This isn't on Deacon's tab. This is daddy's health club. I may or may not have put it on his bill. That man owes me considering what I'm gonna do for him now that Cole is pretty much guaranteed the mayor's office." Rayna replied.

A spa attendant wearing a short sleeved white button up walked over carrying a tray. "Ms. Jaymes, you book this under Mr. Wyatt's name I can take the cigars back if you want." He offered.

"That won't be necessary leave them and the lighter. That's my daddy's brand of bourbon, correct? Single barrel twenty-year-old black label?" She took the crystal decanter off the tray and poured some into a crystal sifter.

"That's correct, Ms. Jaymes." He confirmed.

"Thank you, that's all I need you for right now. We have everythin' else under control." Rayna smiled at him and slipped him a hundred-dollar tip.

"The pleasure is mine, Ms. Jaymes." He smiled back and took his leave.

Rayna grabbed a cigar and a cutter off the tray. She held the end between her teeth and snipped the other end off. "Anyone tells Deacon I did this I will deny it." She lit the cigar and blew a smoke ring.

"This is a side of you that I've never seen before, Princess." Beverly sounded impressed.

"Before my momma died my daddy and I were actually pretty close. He used to sit me on his lap while he smoked his cigars. I was makin' his drinks and lightin' his cigars when I was around five or six. I'm gonna have to brush my teeth before I kiss my husband. He gave up drinkin', smokin', and sex all at the same time. Sex obviously isn't an issue for him, but he doesn't do the first two anymore and he hates it when I smoke." Rayna answered her. That wasn't exactly completely true, but she didn't need to give them anymore fodder about her sex life.

"You and Deacon are not normal people. You give the rest of us somethin' to aspire to, but you set the bar very high." Sadie told her.

"It took us a long time to get it this right. And we still have our share of disagreements. We are both passionate people. We run hot and cold. When we are pissed off or wantin' each other we get all fired up, but if we are really mad or just wanna stew about somethin' we are pretty good at givin' each other the cold shoulder. You wouldn't believe the number of times that we got up on stage and poured our hearts out to each other that we weren't speakin' off stage." Rayna explained.

"Speakin' of passionate people normally I wouldn't tell on her, but I think you may need to keep an eye on Maddie and JC those two are playin' with fire and they are both bound to get burnt any time now." Scarlett warned her.

"I'm aware, Scarlett, thank you for bringin' it to my attention. They are both smart young adults. I don't think I have anything to worry about. I also know that I gave Maddie a very thorough sex talk the other night." Rayna assured her.

"With the way they are lookin' at each other I would say that you may not have to worry 'bout them havin' sex, but they have for sure seen each other naked and done a little explorin'." Juliette chimed in.

"I know she all but admitted that much to me the other night. I didn't tell her this, but sometimes that part can be more fun than the sex part. Beverly, I know that he's your brother and forgive me for what I'm 'bout to say. But, good lord the things that man can do with his fingers and his tongue I don't have words for. Let me just put it this way he's as good in bed as he looks like he'd be." Rayna bit her lip just thinking about it. She only spoke so freely because they had sent June off to get a massage.

"I didn't just hear that. I know that those two overshare sometimes and I'm gonna let it go." Scarlett groaned.

"If we are going about this based on looks then I think Rhett would be pretty damn fantastic." Zoey got a dreamy look on her face.

"I'll say this. If he's anywhere as well endowed as his brother you ain't got nothin' to complain about." Rayna smirked.

"Aunt Ray, please." Scarlett begged.

"Ok, I'm done for now anyway." Rayna threw back her head and laughed.

"Keep going, Rayna, we are all dying to know what goes on between you two." Tandy quipped sarcastically.

"Zoey and I are gonna take this opportunity to go be where Maddie and Daphne are. That's the only way this ain't gonna be weird for me." Scarlett got up with Zoey and walked off.

"Now, give us all the juicy details that you couldn't give us before." Juliette requested.

"That man taught me about sex. I was a virgin when I started dating him. He took his time with me. He would sneak up to my room and he spent I know a good month or two getting me ready to go all the way with him. He started out by fingering me then he moved on to going down on me. Finally, I knew he wasn't gonna hurt me and I just went there with him. He's still the best I've ever had. I think part of it was he never pressured me to touch him. I don't mind telling you that the first time I saw what he was packing in his pants I was just a little scared. I'd never seen one that big before. I had two other boyfriends and we played you show me yours I'll show you mine, but nothing serious. I remember thinking I don't know how the hell I'm gonna take that thing without passing out. Turns out that wasn't a problem he makes me wet enough to solve a drought." Rayna opened up.

"Ok, that is enough. Beverly, tell her to shut up if you don't want to hear that." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"Right now I'm just pretendin' that she isn't talkin' 'bout my baby brother." Beverly replied calmly.

"Pete had his faults and they were numerous. That was the one thing I never could complain about that man was big where it counted and he knew how to use it." Sadie added to the conversation.

"I have no complaints about Avery either. He isn't half horse, but he gets the job done and he is a very givin' lover." Juliette grinned.

"That's Deacon I know I'm crossing that finish line at least twice before he gets there. With him I don't even have to touch myself to get off he takes care of that for me." Rayna liked having female friends that she could open up to.

"I think we all got lucky that way. Bucky screws like a man half his age. He may have lost his hair thanks in large part due to my sister and her husband, but that sure didn't affect anything below the belt." Tandy sipped out of her glass.

"Now I'm with Zoey just out of pure curiosity. I wonder what Rhett is packin'. He has really big hands." Sadie wondered out loud.

"Sadie, that is Deacon's baby brother and it's weird for me to think about because he's so much younger than he is. He's young enough to be our son. That in turn triggers thoughts about what my sons are gonna be doin' when they are Maddie's age. I don't like those thoughts. Deacon was a whore after we broke up." Rayna shuddered at the thought of any other woman being with her man.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. It's just some light fluff leading up to the rehearsal dinner and wedding. I know that there was no Deacon in this chapter, but I will remedy that next chapter. Thanks you all for sticking with me for so long I really appreciate it. I thought the scene with all the women talking about sex was needed because we never really see them cut loose on the show. Until next time please review.


	73. Chapter 73

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 73

The legs of Deacon's chair made a scrapping noise across the floor as he slid it back from the table. He stood up and clinked his knife against his water glass. When he saw that he had everyone's attention he cleared his throat. They were using the Bluebird for Scarlett and Gunnar's rehearsal dinner. "If I could just get your attention for a moment that would be great I've got somethin' that I'd like to say. First I want to thank ya'll for comin' tonight to help celebrate Scarlett and Gunnar. Then I have a few words that I'd like to say to the bride and groom." He began.

He straightened his tie to buy a moment to compose himself. "For those of you who don't know me I'm Deacon Claybourne and I'm Scarlett's uncle. She's my sister's little girl and I helped raise her. So, as far as I'm concerned she's mine too." He picked up his water glass. "Scarlett, I fell head over heels in love with you the moment I held you for the first time. I want you to know that even though I had nothin' to do with makin' you I have always considered you to be my little girl. You've never called me daddy and you never had to, because the feelings were there between us we didn't have to acknowledge 'em for it to be true. I am as proud of you as I am of my other two daughters. From the moment you were born all I've ever wanted was for you to someday find a good man that would cherish you and treat you the way that you deserve to be treated. You're too talented, smart, and beautiful to settle for anythin' less than that. I just want you to know that no matter how old you get or how famous you get you'll always be my little Bug."

He turned to Gunnar now. "Gunnar, I've known you for a long time. Hell, I was the one who helped you get your job here at the Bluebird. I've always thought that you were a good kid with a good head on your shoulders. You confirmed that suspicion when you had the good sense to take up with my niece. Tomorrow I'm gonna walk her down the aisle to you and I'm gonna put her hand in yours, but I ain't givin' her to you. I'm givin' you my trust that you will always love and take care of her, but I'm not vacatin' the spot that I have in my heart for her I'm openin' another and I'm welcomin' you into this family as what amounts to my son-in-law. You're one of us now and you're stuck with us for life. But if you ever hurt my Bug you will have me to answer to."

He raised his glass. "Now, if I can get everyone to raise their glasses." He waited. "To Gunnar and Scarlett, may you two know the kind of happiness with each other that I found with the love of my life. May the band always play and the lyrics always come. Be each other's best friend and don't hold anythin' back. Gunnar be her Johnny Cash and she'll be your June Carter. Scarlett, be his Tammy Wynette and he will be your George Jones. But most of all remember to always love and support each other. Marriage is hard work, but in the end it's always worth it. As long as you have each other you can make it through anythin'. So, here's to my oldest baby girl and my soon to be son."

There wasn't a dry eye in the room by the time Deacon finished speaking.

"That was absolutely brilliant, babe." Rayna pecked his lips and wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I only spoke from the heart, Ray." He squeezed her hands.

Scarlett planted a big kiss on Deacon's cheek. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Bug." Deacon hugged her tightly.

"I promise I'll take care of her." Gunnar offered him his hand.

"I know you will." Deacon shook his hand.

Maddie and Daphne took the stage.

Maddie picked up her guitar. "Scarlett, Gunnar, we are both really happy for you guys. This is a song that Daph and I wrote with dad just for you." She started to strum her guitar.

" _What do you need that you don't have?"_ Daphne started the song.

" _What have you lost and can't get back?"_ The sisters sang together.

" _What if I promised it'll be alright?"_ Maddie picked up.

" _It'll be alright."_ They harmonized.

" _Cause we got a love, oh. We got a candy apple red sweet and steady as a heartbeat love. Oh, me and you we got a love. Oh, we got the will of a tall pine once in a lifetime love. Oh, me and you."_

Deacon and Rayna took hands and smiled at each other.

"I'm so damn proud of them." She whispered.

"Me too." He kissed her temple.

" _The darkest cloud will split and fade."_ Maddie started the second verse.

" _Every tear will wash away."_ They sang together again.

" _And I'll hold you close 'til the sun comes out."_ Maddie sang again.

" _Baby, can you see it now?"_ Their voices blended.

" _We got a love. We got a hope like a new spring patient like a porch swing love. Oh, me and you we got a love. Oh, we're as free as a blackbird true as the good word love. Oh, me and you."_

"I think they may be better than we are." Gunnar put his arm around Scarlett.

"Those girls sure are somethin' special. I'll give you that." Scarlett agreed with him.

" _So, what do you need that you don't have?"_ Daphne reprised.

" _What have you lost and can't get back?"_

" _What if I promised it'll be alright?"_ Maddie took that line again.

" _It'll be alright."_

" _Cause we got a love, oh. We got a candy apple red sweet and steady as a heartbeat love. Oh, me and you we got a love. Oh, we got the will of a tall pine once in a lifetime love. Oh, me and you."_

" _Cause we got a love. We got a hope like a new spring patient like a porch swing love. Oh, me and you we got a love. Oh, we're as free as a blackbird true as the good word love. Oh, me and you."_

" _Oh, me and you."_ Daphne finished.

"Thank you both so much for that it was amazin'." Scarlett hugged her cousins.

"You're welcome. You cover for me a lot and you don't have to." Maddie replied.

"That was perfect, girls." Gunnar hugged them as well.

"Thanks, Gunnar." Daphne smiled at him.

"Ok, I'm trusting all of you not to do anything to get in trouble between now and the wedding tomorrow. Don't prove to me that you need adult supervision." Rayna lectured them before she would let them leave for the night.

"You have nothing to worry about from us we are gonna be with you at your place." Scarlett reminded her.

"You are not the ones I'm worried about." Rayna looked over at the guys.

"We plan to be on our best behavior." Gunnar assured her.

"You know to call Deacon when you're done doing whatever it is you're doin' because he's your DD." Rayna reminded them.

"We know, don't worry. And you don't have to worry about the groom either. As best man it's my job to get him to the church on time." Will promised.

"That's why I'm worried. You and you other best friend would drop him off somewhere in Virginia and leave him to find his way back if you thought you could get away with it." Rayna rolled her eyes at him.

"Rayna, I'll supervise the best man and the cowboy to make sure they don't do anything to the groom." Rhett volunteered.

"Thank you, Rhett, I knew that I could count on one of you boys." Rayna smiled at him.

* * *

"Mornin', sleepy head, I didn't expect you to be up for awhile yet. We didn't wake you did we?" June stood at the stove the next morning making breakfast.

"I'm an insomniac, momma, it takes a little more than a bunch of girlish gigglin' to wake me up." Deacon poured himself some coffee.

"What time did you get in last night, babe?" Rayna sat feeding the twins.

"I didn't get back home 'til 'round four. I had to stop and get those drunks some food." He replied.

"You're the best uncle ever, Uncle Deacon." Scarlett smiled at him.

"Anythin' for my girls you know that." He winked at her.

"I can vouch for that. He lied to the police for me." Sadie chimed in. All the bridesmaids had stayed all night at the ranch to make things easier.

"He's gotten me out of trouble a time or two in my time too." Zoey agreed.

"Sadie, you may not wanna say that so loudly. You never know when the media has bugged one of our phones." Juliette cautioned her.

"Juliette, I think you're a little bit more important in your own mind than you are to the press." Rayna shook her head.

"Have you broke the good news to my baby brother yet?" Beverly asked.

"No, I was letting him wake up all the way before I sprang that on him." Rayna retorted.

"What's goin' on?" He sighed.

"In a little while my glam squad is pretty much gonna take over the house to help us get ready. They are taking care of hair, nails, and makeup." Rayna told him.

"I can live with that I'm used to that. It's far from the first time I've had to deal with your people." He shrugged his shoulders.

"That's not the part I expected you to have the problem with. You need to go pick Paul up from the rehab center. You about the only one that can handle him." Rayna broke that news to him as gently as possible.

"I'll go get him, but what do you want me to do with him? There are gonna be all kinda people runnin' 'round here like crazy. The event crew already started settin' up for the weddin'." He pointed out.

"Unless you get Rusty to pick him up and time it so he will be here in just before the ceremony. I know that you don't want him in the house." Rayna suggested.

"That's exactly what I'll do. I can't deal with him for longer than I have to." Deacon agreed to that. He would agree to anything if it meant he didn't have to deal with Paul.

"I need JC here a half hour earlier than all the other groomsmen. I wanna run through this song with him one last time before we do it for real." Maddie stressed.

"You ain't gettin' him up. You did not see the state those boys were in when I dropped 'em off this mornin'." Deacon chuckled.

"Maddie, take it from someone who has been doing this for a very long time. There is such as a thing as being overly prepared. I know you want it to be perfect and it will be. You don't wanna run through it again right now." Rayna advised her.

"Alright, mom, I trust you." Maddie relented.

"Ok, food is ready. Everyone help yourself. We are on a tight schedule." June said.

"Momma, you're not a short order cook you didn't have to do this." Deacon got up and grabbed plates for everyone.

"What was I gonna do let Beverly or Rayna cook? Between the two of them it would be burnt and they would give everyone food poisonin'. That was not a chance I was willin' to take today." June scoffed. Her daughter and daughter-in-law were both lacking in the cooking department.

"It's not Princess's fault she had cooks growin' up." Beverly teased Rayna.

"That's true, but what's your excuse?" Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"Let's eat. I'm callin' this little spat before ya'll really get into it." Deacon eyeballed his wife and sister warily.

* * *

Scarlett sat in one of the guest rooms getting ready. Her hair was curled and half of it was gathered in a ponytail. Her dress was made of white lace and it kind of looked like a white doily. "That should just 'bout do it. How do I look?" She asked.

"You are beautiful." June told her granddaughter.

"You look so, so pretty." Beverly gushed. Things between them could still be strained at times despite the fact that the older woman had turned over a new leaf.

"You're breathtaking. I don't know that Gunnar is gonna be able to talk after he sees you." Rayna added.

"Scarlett, you're a babe. You always have been. You could be wearing a burlap sack right now and Gunnar wouldn't care." Zoey pointed out.

"This is the one and only time that I will forgive you for looking better than me." Juliette told her.

"If that boy doesn't cry when he sees you then you have my permission to smack him." Sadie threw her opinion in.

"Where are Maddie and Daphne?" Scarlett looked around and didn't see her cousins anywhere.

"They will be back up any minute. Maddie wanted to go talk to Jimmy and make sure that they agreed on things for the song. And Daphne and Micah are both practicing pulling the boys and Cadence down the aisle in wagons. They are both ready and we can take a few pictures before the ceremony." Rayna promised her.

"The guys are already here?" Scarlett acted surprised.

"Yes they are because I threatened them with death if they thought about showing up late. They are out in one of the barns. Don't ask me which one there are at least five of them on the property." Tandy said from the doorway.

"We're not scared of you, Tandy, we just rather not hear your mouth." Deacon walked up behind her dressed in a suit and tie. "Do ya'll mind if I have a minute alone with the bride?"

"No, we have other places that we can be." June replied. She touched his cheek gently on the way out of the room. "You look handsome, Deacon John."

"Thanks, momma." Deacon smiled.

"Later," Rayna told him. She didn't have to say more than that for him to know what she meant.

"You bet," He winked at her. He waited for the room to clear out before he went in.

"What did you need, Uncle Deacon?" Scarlett turned around to face him.

"Wow, there is no way that the beautiful woman standin' in front of me today was the same little girl that used to snuggle up in bed with me." He smiled at her.

"Stop, you're gonna make me blush." She smiled back.

"It's true. I just wanna make sure that this is what you want. I can't imagine a better man for you than Gunnar. I only want your happiness." He went into daddy mode.

"This is what I want." She assured him.

"Ok, good. I also want you to know that no matter what I'm the first man who loved you and no one will ever love you the way I do." He replied.

She threw her arms around his neck. "I know that and I love you too. I never felt like I didn't have a daddy because I had you."

"Come on, let's go get you hitched." He took her hand and led her out of the room.

* * *

"You ready for this Cricket?" JC whispered to Maddie. The both stood on one side of the aisle.

"As ready as I'm ever going to be." Maddie whispered back. She was little nervous. They hadn't let Scarlett or Gunnar hear this song yet they wanted it to be a surprise.

Zoey gave them a thumb's up from the back to tell them to everyone was in place and ready to go.

JC signaled to the band and started strumming his guitar.

"Here we go there's no turnin' back now." Will teased Gunnar.

"I wouldn't turn back if someone paid me." Gunnar replied. All the guys were dressed in three piece suits with black ties. They had red roses in their lapels.

When the music started the bridesmaids started walking down the aisle. They all wore pale yellow dresses. Once they all made it down the aisle JC looked at Maddie and nodded.

" _When did you know your heart was mine? You've told the tale so many times. There's nothing better we've got to do. With all these miles to get to where we're goin' to."_ She sang.

Scarlett started her walk down the aisle on Deacon's arm.

Gunnar was absolutely stunned when he laid eyes on her. His chest got tight and it was an effort for him to breathe normally. His eyes filled with tears. If there was a more beautiful woman in the world he didn't know where to find her.

" _It's a hard road honey and there ain't nobody I rather be next to. It's a rough ride baby, but we're gonna make it together me and you. When you're tired I'll grab the wheel and you take over when I'm done. Love is takin' turns ridin' shotgun."_ JC added his voice to the chorus.

" _When did you know? Tell me again my heart was yours when you walked in. You made a vow to hold it dear. And you've kept your promise to me all these years."_ He didn't take his eyes off Maddie as he sang. That was exactly the way he felt about her.

" _It's a hard road honey and there ain't nobody I rather be next to. It's a rough ride baby, but we're gonna make it together me and you. When you're tired I'll grab the wheel and you take over when I'm done. Love is takin' turns ridin' shotgun."_

Deacon held on to Scarlett's arm a little tighter as they made it further down the aisle. He had a few different emotions warring it out inside of him at the moment.

" _It's you and me against the world. I am your man and you're my girl."_ JC sang.

" _It's you and me against the world You are my man and I'm your girl."_ Maddie sang at the same time.

" _And when we're old I'll take your hand and ask you then when did you know tell me again."_ They finished together in unison. It took them a minute to realize that there were other people around. They took their places when they came back to their senses.

Gunnar stepped over to Deacon and Scarlett when they finally made it to the altar.

Deacon kissed Scarlett's cheek and put her hand in Gunnar's. "Take care of each other." He whispered to them.

The minister took that as a sign to begin. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of this man, Gunnar Adam Scott to this woman, Scarlett June O'Connor. If there are any among us who know of any reason that these two shouldn't be wed speak now or forever hold your peace." He paused long enough to allow time for objections. Of course there were none. "Who gives this woman to this man?"

Deacon had to clear his throat. Tears threatened to spill over at any moment. He was happy for Scarlett and so proud of how well Maddie had done with that song that he was a little bit of a mess. "Her momma and I do." He managed to get out. He went over to where Rayna, Beverly, and June sat and took his seat.

Rayna took his hand and squeezed it in a comforting gesture. She knew just how much Scarlett meant to him. She meant a lot to her too.

"Do you, Gunnar, take Scarlett to be your lawfully wedded wife?" The minister asked.

"I do," Gunnar managed to find his voice.

"Do you, Scarlett, take Gunnar to be your lawfully wedded husband?" The minister repeated the question.

"I do," Scarlett didn't even think twice.

"The couple has chosen to write their own vows and I will let them recite them for you at this time. Gunnar, you may begin." The minister went on.

Scarlett turned and handed the bouquet of wildflowers that she held to Zoey so she could take both of Gunnar's hands.

"Scarlett, the minute I met you this is what I wanted. It didn't matter to me that you were with someone else. You had this pull on me that I have never felt from any other woman. I knew at that moment I could do anything for you, but let you go. I didn't realize the true depth of my feelings for you until the first time we sang together. It was like everything clicked into place and I found the missing piece that makes me whole. Even though I didn't know it there was a void in my life and you filled it. It wasn't our turn to be together yet so I waited and I became your friend and then purely on whim like we've always done everything I became your lover. I want to spend the rest of my life being that to you. I messed this up big time before, but I don't plan to make that mistake ever again. You're more precious to me than you will ever know. I could make music without you, but I don't want to. It's just words set to music without you on that stage beside me. You give my life meaning and I am so excited to be your husband." Gunnar for the first time in probably ever wasn't awkward. He was firm with his words and he got his point across perfectly.

"Scarlett, recite your vows to Gunnar." The minister instructed.

"Gunnar, meetin' you was probably the best thing to ever happen to me. You opened up a side of myself that I never even knew existed and if I did I was too scared to explore what it might mean. I thought of myself as a poet, but you saw me for what I really am a songwriter. You knew more about me in the time it took you to read a poem than I knew about myself. If it weren't for you there is no doubt in my mind that I wouldn't be on the path that I'm on now. Every good thing in my life that I have now is because of you. I love you more than I ever knew it was possible to love. You also make me crazier than anyone that I have ever met. You have the ability to make any situation awkward, but it always makes me laugh even when I'm havin' a bad day. You know who I am in my soul and I know who you are in yours. That's the one thing that makin' music together has given the both of us. We are extremely lucky to have that, because it is very rare. We let the wheels fall off of this thing once because we took it for granted. I'll take the blame for that 'cause I got scared and I didn't know where to turn. You were the one I talked to 'bout that type of thing only that time I couldn't 'cause you were the one the situation was 'bout. It took us a little while to work our way back to each other, but we finally managed to do it. You're the only reason that I'm still in Nashville. You talked me into stayin'. My car breakin' down on that God forsaken road trip was the universe's way of tellin' us that we are meant to be together and time and distance can't change that. As long as you're in my life I will never long for a melody to my lyrics." Scarlett squeezed his hands tight as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Now, may I have the rings?" The minister asked.

Gunnar looked over at Will expectantly.

"Rings? No one told me I supposed to have those." Will patted down his pockets and then he laughed. He couldn't help himself he knew how worried Gunnar had been that he was going to lose them. "Relax, I got 'em right here." He placed the rings in the minister's hand.

Gunnar picked up Scarlett's ring and she picked his up.

"Gunnar, repeat after me. Scarlett, wear this ring as a symbol of my promise to always love and cherish you. Let it serve as a reminder that even as a circle has no beginning and ending neither does our love." The minister told him what to say.

Gunnar's hands shook as he slipped the ring on Scarlett's finger. "Scarlett, wear this ring as a symbol of my promise to always love and cherish you. Let it serve as a reminder that even as a circle has no beginning and ending neither does our love."

"Scarlett, repeat after me. Gunnar, wear this ring as a symbol of my promise to always love and cherish you. Let it serve as a reminder that even as a circle has no beginning and ending neither does our love." The minister gave her the same set of instructions.

Another tear spilled from Scarlett's eye as she slipped the ring on his finger. "Gunnar, wear this ring as a symbol of my promise to always love and cherish you. Let it serve as a reminder that even as a circle has no beginnin' and no endin' neither does our love."

The minister had them join hands again. "By the power vested in me by God and by the state of Tennessee I now pronounce you husband and wife. Son, go on and kiss your bride."

Gunnar put his hands on both of Scarlett's cheeks and kissed her deeply.

Scarlett responded by putting her hands on his shoulders and kissing him back just as fiercely.

When they finally pulled away from each other they were smiling.

"It is my pleasure to present to you for the very first time Mr. and Mrs. Gunnar Adam Scott. What God hath joined together let no man tear asunder." The minister finished up the ceremony.

Music began to play again as the wedding party walked back down the aisle.

Scarlett and Gunnar laughed and smiled like a couple of little kids. They kept their hands clasped firmly together.

"I like the sound of that, Mrs. Scott." He told her.

"I'll be Mrs. Scott all you want me to in private, but out in public it's still O'Connor professionally." She smiled at him.

"I get to call you mine that's all that matters." He replied. It may have been cheesy, but it was true.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Don't worry ya'll that's not all there is to this wedding. I wanted to get us through the ceremony first. The reception is where things are really going to get fun. I know on the show Shotgun was supposed to be Luke's song, but I liked it as a duet for Maddie and JC. There is a ton more of exciting stuff to look forward to. I plan to keep going as long as you guys keep reading we need something to get us through until Season five starts. Until next time please review.


	74. Chapter 74

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 74

"Let's get this reception started in style." The DJ announced. A huge tent had been erected for the reception and it backed up to one of the barns on the property.

"Here we have father of the bride Deacon Claybourne escorting his lovely wife Rayna Jaymes, his momma June Claybourne, and his sister mother of the bride Beverly O'Connor." He was aware of how odd it sounded to refer to a brother and sister as father and mother of the bride, but Scarlett had asked him to and he didn't question it. He was a friend of Gunnar's and he had explained the situation to him.

Deacon walked in and took a seat at the table closest to the bridal table with the three women in question.

"First let me introduce the ring bearers Deacon and Jaymes Claybourne riding shotgun with the flower girl Cadence Barkley. They are being pulled along in by groomsman and nephew of the groom Micah Brenner who is escorting junior bridesmaid Daphne Claybourne." He announced.

Micah and Daphne walked in holding hands they each pulled the wagons that the babies were riding in.

"Now let's give it up for groomsman JC Grayson and bridesmaid Maddie Claybourne." The DJ moved on.

JC and Maddie walked to the bridal table with their arms linked together.

"Next we have groomsman and uncle of the bride Rhett Claybourne escorting bridesmaid Sadie Stone." The DJ named off the next pair.

Rhett carried Sadie in on his back and they were both laughing.

"That brings us to groomsman Avery Barkley and bridesmaid Juliette Barnes." The DJ continued.

Avery and Juliette waved to everyone before they took their places at the table.

"We are getting closer to the main event. Introducing best man Will Lexington and maid of honor Zoey Dalton." The DJ started to get the guests hyped up.

Will and Zoey strutted to the the table like they were walking the runway.

"For the reason we're all here. Make some noise for the bride and groom, Mr. and Mrs. Scott!" The DJ cheered.

Gunnar dipped Scarlett back and kissed her before they walked in and took their seats.

They had decided to do toasts before dinner. White jacketed waiters passed out glasses of champagne to everyone.

"Ray, check mine and make sure that it's ginger ale." Deacon passed his glass to Rayna.

Rayna took a sip. "You're good to drink that. Tandy and I both pounded it into their heads to make sure they didn't screw that up. I'd rather they slip and give Paul the real thing than you." She handed him his glass back.

"You're way too good for me sometimes, baby." Deacon grinned at her.

"Tell everyone something that we don't know." Tandy winked at him to show him that she had only been kidding.

Will stood up at the table and let out a rebel yell to get everyone's attention. He laughed when he saw all eyes were on him. "As best man I get the honor of makin' my speech first. I tried to rewrite the rules and Zoey declined to trade with me. It was worth a shot though." He waited for the expected laughter to die down before he continued.

"It's been my pleasure to know Scarlett and Gunnar since I first moved into their old apartment buildin'. They hadn't been together very long, but even then I could see what they had together was special. Gunnar and I quickly became fast friends and a thorn in Scarlett's side. He opened up to me about things and one of those things was the way he felt about her. Let me tell you that I was blown away by the way he described her and his feelings for her. She talked about him much the same way. Not that either of them had to say it I could tell just from the way they looked at each other. They are some of the best friends I've ever had in my life. They are always there to talk and I could confide anythin' in them without havin' to worry 'bout anyone else findin' out. Here is to Gunnar and Scarlett. I wish you both all the love and happiness you can stand." He toasted.

Zoey stood up now. "Scarlett and I have been friends for as long as I can remember. So long that she's more than a friend to me she's my sister. When we were little girls we used to plan our weddings all the time and play bride. I think it's safe to say that the real thing is better than anything that we ever could have imagined. When I first got to town Scarlett and Gunnar weren't together at the time, but it was still easy to see how crazy they were about each other. She means absolutely everything to him and he is her real life dream come true. To Scarlett and Gunnar may you become that crazy old married couple that fights about everything, but holds hands everywhere they go."

On the spur of the moment Beverly decided that she might as well say something. "When a mother gives birth to a little girl she both dreads and looks forward to this day. She wants her daughter to have things better than she did and to pick a better man than she was ever capable of. With Gunnar, Scarlett found that. He loves and understands her. He is everythin' I ever dreamed up for her and more. He's her real life prince charmin' and I'm honored to call him my son now. To my baby girl and my new son, I want only the best for you."

Gunnar surprised everyone by standing up and raising his glass. "Growing up I didn't have much of a family it was just my grandmother, my brother, and me. Then when I got older I went for the longest time without having any family until my nephew Micah came into my life. Deacon, Rayna, June, Beverly, ya'll have taken me in and made me feel like I'm part of a family again. You are there for me any time that I need anything. I don't even have to ask you for help you just give it to me. Rhett, we don't know each other that well yet, but I have a pretty good feeling that we are gonna be good friends. Maddie, Daphne, you two girls are just like little sisters to Scarlett. Now that we're married I guess that kinda makes me your big brother. I promise to always be there when you need me and I'll even be there when you don't. Deac, I'm gonna have the best time watching you grow into that Outlaw nickname that your daddy gave you. Jayme, my godson and my own personal terrorist I will guide and protect you no matter what. I want to thank each and every one of you for taking me in I'm honored. I couldn't be prouder to be a part of this family."

"That was so sweet, babe." Scarlett kissed him when he sat down.

"I don't know how they expect us to be able to eat with the way they're carryin' on." Rhett joked with Avery.

"I think we'll manage just fine. I'm so damn hungry. The wedding Nazis have been starving us all day." Avery retorted.

"Scarlett, I'm warning you that you don't want to start something with me. I can see that look in your eyes right now and I know you're up to something." Gunnar smirked at her when they cut the cake.

"Come on let's do this." Scarlett acted like she was going to gently feed him the piece of cake like he had with her instead she smashed it in his face.

"That's exactly what I was talking about." He pulled her to him and kissed her. He smeared the icing that was on his face all over hers.

* * *

"You behavin' yourself, Paul?" Deacon went and sat down by his father. He was checking up on him to make sure he didn't cause any trouble.

"I'm doin' just fine you didn't have to come over here and check up on me. I haven't been sneakin' drinks if that's what you're worried 'bout, DJ. I told you I don't wanna mess up my chance to at least get regular pictures of my grandkids." Paul replied.

"And I told you when you're ready to start workin' your steps I won't turn you away. Don't call me DJ like that's gonna make somethin' better though." Deacon retorted.

"I know that I done a lot to you that I can't ever make up for. I don't blame you for hatin' me the way you do." Paul told him.

"I ain't got time to waste hatin' you, Paul. I got way too much good stuff in my life to let you taint that. I talked to the people at the rehab center and they said they are gonna be releasin' you soon. We need to start thinkin' 'bout where you're gonna stay once they let you go." Deacon told him.

"I'll figure somethin' out I always do." Paul assured him.

Rayna walked over and saved things from getting more awkward than they already were. She carried Little Deacon on her hip. "Sorry to interrupt, but this one was wanting his daddy."

"Come here, Bubba." Deacon took his son into his arms.

"Hey, Paul, how you doin'?" Rayna gave him a small smile. It hadn't been the complete truth when she said that Deacon was the only one who could deal with Paul. She could handle him better than anyone and get him to behave.

"I can't complain I've been a lot worse." Paul smiled back at her.

"Deac, can you say hi to Paul?" Deacon asked the little boy.

"Hi," Little Deacon chirped.

"Look at how big you're gettin'. The last time I saw you, you couldn't even hold your head up on your own and now you're talkin'." Paul cooed at his grandson.

"He can say hi, bye, dada, and momma. They are workin' on everythin' else. His sisters are tryin' real hard to get him and his brother to say their names." Deacon explained to him.

"Where is his brother?" Paul asked.

"Jayme is a little social butterfly unlike his brother. He's making his rounds. I will bring him over so you can say hi and I will have the girls come over too." Rayna answered him.

"Where are the girls?" Deacon liked to keep an eye on his daughters.

"They are floating around here happy as can be. I can't swear to it, but Maddie may be involved in a plot to mess with Gunnar, you know the usual." Rayna laughed.

"That sounds 'bout right to me." Deacon agreed.

"Deacon, they sent me to find you, it's 'bout time for your dance with Scarlett." Rhett kept his eyes on his brother, so he didn't have to look at their father.

"Rhett, it's good to see you, son. I was sorry to hear 'bout your momma." Paul tried to make conversation with his youngest child.

"It's a little late to pretend like you give a damn. So, do me a favor and don't. You can keep my momma's name outta your mouth too. You treated us like we were trash and threw us away. You don't get to act like you care now. I don't have a father and I made peace with that a long time ago." Rhett spoke his peace and walked over to the bar to get a drink.

"Give him time, Paul. He may never come around, but he may be willing to hear you out." Rayna put her hand on his shoulder. "Babe, you better get over there. You don't wanna keep your girl waiting."

Deacon kissed his son's cheek. "You go to momma; daddy will be back soon." He handed him to Rayna. "Alright, see you in a minute, babe." He stole a kiss from her.

 ** _XXXXXXXXXX_**

 _Look at the two of you dancin' that way lost in the moment and each other's face. So much in love you're alone in this place like there's nobody else in the world. I was enough for her not long ago. I was her number one she told me so. And she still means the world to me just so you know, so be careful when you hold my girl._

Deacon and Scarlett spun around the dance floor. He was the closest thing that she had to a father and she'd wanted to acknowledge that. She had checked with Maddie and Daphne first and they had both been ok with it.

 _Time changes everything life must go on and I'm not gonna stand in your way._

"You look mighty damn happy right now." He smiled.

"I am pretty damn happy." The smile that lit her face said it all.

 _But, I loved her first I held her first and a place in my heart will always be hers. From the first breath she breathed when she first smiled at me. I knew the love of a father runs deep. And I prayed that she'd find you some day, but it's still hard to give her away. I loved her first._

"I know the feelin'. It gives you a better high than any drug ever could." He told her. He held her lovingly.

"You're the one that let me know it was ok to give into these feelings and I didn't have to run." She replied.

 _How could that beautiful woman with you be the same freckle faced kid that I knew? The one that I read all those fairytales to and tucked into bed all those nights. And I knew the first time I saw you with her it was only a matter of time._

"I did?" He asked.

"Yeah, from the time I came to Nashville I watched you love Rayna enough to do everythin' for her, but give up on her. If you could feel that intense and not be scared by it, then I knew I'd be ok." She informed him.

 _I loved her first I held her first and a place in my heart will always be hers. From the first breath she breathed when she first smiled at me. I knew the love of a father runs deep. And I prayed that she'd find you some day, but it's still hard to give her away. I loved her first._

"I ain't no one's role model. That was after I screwed things up every way possible." He retorted.

"You really need to learn how to take a compliment. It wasn't just from that. I remember stayin' with you two sometimes when I was little. I knew then that I wanted what you two had." She corrected him.

 _From the first breath she breathed when she first smiled at me. I knew the love of a father runs deep. Some day you might know what I'm goin' through when a miracle smiles up at you. I loved her first._

"Scarlett, I love you so much and trust me when I say you have what I have without all the stupid mistakes that led to that point." He kissed her cheek when the song ended.

"I love you too, daddy." She had to call him that just once. She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Daphne and Will had been tapped to preform the song for Scarlett and Gunnar's first dance. They sat on stools side by side. Will had his guitar on his lap. He looked at Daphne and they both nodded. He started to play a tune on his guitar and the band followed him.

Daphne took a deep breath before she started the song. _"When the road gets dark and you can no longer see. Let my love throw a spark. Have a little faith in me."_ For such a little girl she had a huge voice.

Will smiled at her encouragingly as he continued to play.

" _And when the tears you cry are all can believe. Give these loving arms a try. Have a little faith in me."_ Daphne kept singing.

Gunnar held Scarlett close to him and just smiled at her like a crazy man.

"What?" Scarlett smiled up at him.

" _Have a little faith in me. Have a little faith in me. Have a little faith in me. Have a little faith in me."_ Will and Daphne sang together.

"Nothing. I just wanted to look at my wife." Gunnar replied.

"Your wife just wants to look at her husband." Scarlett kissed him softly.

" _When your secret hear can not speak so easily."_ Daphne picked up again.

" _Come here darlin' from a whisper start."_ Will sang softly.

" _To have a little faith in me."_ Their voices blended together.

" _And when your back's against the wall just turn around and you, you will see. I will catch your, I will catch your fall. Have a little faith in me."_ Daphne sang solo again.

" _Have a little faith in me. Have a little faith in me. Have a little faith in me. Have a little faith in me."_ They sang together again.

"I love hearing you say that more than you'll ever know." Gunnar laughed softly.

"I love sayin' it." Scarlett replied.

Will winked at Daphne and smiled. He was giving her the courage for the next part of the song.

Daphne stood up off her stood and took her mic off the stand. _"I've been loving you for such a long time. Expecting nothing in return. Just for you to have a little faith in me. You say time, time is our friend, but for us there is no end. All you gotta do is have faith in me."_ She belted out.

"You are too damn perfect sometimes." Gunnar kissed the top of her head.

"I know. You ain't worthy of me, but I love you anyway." Scarlett teased him.

"I love you too."

" _Have a little faith in me." Will sang soulfully._

" _Have a little faith in me."_ Daphne answered back.

" _Have a little faith in me."_ They sang together again.

" _Have a little faith in me."_ Daphne sang.

" _Ohh, ohh, ohh,"_ Will did some harmonies for her.

" _Have a little faith in me."_ They finished together softly.

Will took Daphne's hand and helped her down off the stage. He kissed her forehead. "That was great, kiddo."

"Thanks, Will." Daphne blushed.

"Wow, why didn't we think of putting those two together before?" Rayna turned to Deacon.

"Because we didn't know it'd sound that great." Deacon was floored.

Daphne bounced over to her parents. "How'd I do?"

"Oh, baby girl, I am so, so proud of you." Rayna hugged her tight.

"That was amazin', Squirt. And that doesn't even cover it." Deacon put his arms around both his girls.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

A waiter carried a tray of shots over to the wedding party. Daphne and Micah were otherwise occupied at the moment thankfully.

Gunnar passed shots out to everyone. "Alright, here we go."

"What is this?" Will questioned.

"It's tequila. Don't worry you're gonna be fine." Mack assured his boyfriend. It was possible that he and Gunnar had temporarily joined forces to get Will and JC back for all the hell they always caused everyone else.

"To Gunnar and Scarlett." Will raised his shot glass.

"To Scarlett and Gunnar." Everyone else parroted and they touched glasses.

They all threw back their shots easily with the exception of Will and Maddie. Maddie grimaced because she wasn't used to drinking.

Will on the other hand turned red in the face, sputtered, choked, and coughed.

Mack beat on his back trying hard to stave off his laughter. "You ok, babe?"

Will bent over at the waist for a minute to catch his breath. "What the fuck was that?" his voice sounded like he had gargled broken glass.

"That was Everclear and payback for every bullshit thing you and JC have done to me since you met." Gunnar laughed.

That finally sent Mack over the edge and he busted out laughing. "I'm sorry, babe, you really did deserve it."

"That's ok, ya'll assholes, have no idea what Jimmy and I are capable of. This means war." Will breathed heavily.

"Here, pal," JC handed him his beer.

"Thanks, at least someone cares 'bout me." Will took a long swig of the beer.

* * *

JC and Maddie swayed along to the rhythm of the song that was playing with their bodies pressed close together. They were lost in each other's eyes. It was like there wasn't another soul in the room. At the moment Layla was on the stage singing. Scarlett and Gunnar had wanted everyone to play at least one song to make the reception a little bit more fun and relaxed.

"Did you maybe want to go take a walk?" Maddie licked her dry lips.

"Yeah, I think that can be arranged." JC agreed with her. Neither one of them was due to sing for awhile and it would be good to get some fresh air. On their way out of the tent he grabbed a bottle of champagne and two glasses. He poured them each a glass and handed one to Maddie.

The clicked their glasses together and both of them took a sip.

"How long do you think we have before anyone misses us?" She threaded her arm through his.

He consulted the watch on his right arm. "The reception really just started and it's most likely gonna be goin' all night. This is really the period for them to just mingle and not do anythin' important. I'd say that we have a half hour to forty-five minutes 'fore anyone needs us for anythin'." He gave her a detailed reply.

"That's more than enough time then." She replied cryptically.

"More than enough time for what?" He asked confused.

"Enough time for us to have sex." She smiled.

"You're sure?" He bit his lip.

"I've never been more sure." She promised him.

They walked to another one of the barns. It was far enough away that they weren't likely to get caught, but close enough that they could get back in a hurry. She'd obviously been planning for this because tiny white candles were lit. They climbed up to the hayloft and started kissing. The music from the tent filtered down to where they were. Scarlett and Gunnar were on the stage at the moment.

" _If I didn't know better I'd hang my hat right there."_

JC slowly undid the zipper on the back of Maddie's dress while he continued to kiss her.

" _If I didn't know better I'd follow you up the stairs."_

Maddie pushed his jacket off of his shoulders, undid his tie, and started unbuttoning his shirt. They had to be careful not to mess up their clothes and they didn't really have any time to waste.

He pushed the straps of her dress down and kissed each of her shoulders.

" _Stop saying those sweet things you know I like to hear."_

She undid his belt and and unzipped his pants. She pushed them down around his ankles.

" _The horns are blowing louder and the bailiff's drawing near."_

He ran his hands up the skirt of her dress and slowly lowered her panties. They were both sensuous and deliberate with their movements.

" _Why do I keep drinking wasting my time on you."_

She pushed his boxers down and took his already hard penis in her hand and stroked it.

He moaned deep in his chest. "You're still sure?" He gave her another chance to back out.

"I'm so sure." She ran her thumb over the head of his member.

" _If I didn't know better. Well, damn it I do."_

He retrieved a condom for his pocket. He undid the wrapper and then rolled it down the shaft of his very large member. He picked her up with her legs wrapped around his waist and he laid on her down on a cot that was up there. He was careful not to muss her hair.

" _There's a hole in what you're saying. I can plainly see."_

Maddie put both of her hands on his cheeks and kissed him. She could feel the tip of his length at her entrance. She moaned into his mouth and held on to him tighter.

" _You have a lover that's waiting, but baby you're right here with me."_

JC quickly pushed into her so he didn't prolong the pain. He wiped the tears away from the corners of her eyes using the pads of his thumbs.

" _Oh, you might as well be the devil."_

She gasped as she felt him fill her for the first time both in pain and pleasure. There wasn't too much pain though, because he'd prepared her for this pretty well.

He gave her a moment to stretch around the width of his penis before he started to rock his hips gently. He kissed her neck careful not to leave a hickey after how mad she'd got at him the last time he had.

" _Oh, keeping me out past three. Oh, you're one with that apple. So, baby you can't blame me."_

She kissed his chest and wrapped her arms around his broad back. She moaned out when he brushed against her sensitive clit.

His hands went to her breasts and he kneaded them gently skating the pads of his thumbs over her cloth covered nipples. He felt them harden underneath his touch.

" _Why don't you keep drinking?"_

She writhed in pleasure underneath him. She pushed her hips against his to meet his thrusts. She felt herself on the verge of a really big orgasm.

He fused his lips to hers and pulled on her bottom lip. He moved in and out of her in long deep thrusts. He too was already close. That didn't surprise him at all it had been a really long time since he had sex.

" _Give me one night with you."_

She slid her hands up his shirt and dug her nails into the flesh of his muscular back. Her mouth opened in a silent moan. Her lips swollen and red from the force of his kisses.

He threw his hand back and groaned. She felt better than he'd thought she would and he had thought she'd feel pretty damn amazing.

" _If I didn't know better. Well, damn it I do. You know that I do."_

Maddie wrapped her legs around his waist and locked her ankles together. She could feel the tingle of her impending orgasm getting stronger.

JC pressed his chest against hers to let her know he was there and it was safe for her to let go.

" _Oh, baby you're right here with me."_

" _Oh, baby you know."_

The pair came in unison as the song ended. Her walls clamped down around him and he emptied his load into the condom.

He thrust gently a few more time as they both rode out the after shocks of their orgasms before slowly pulling out.

They look at each other and huge smiles broke out on their faces.

"Was it as good as you thought it'd be?" He rubbed her inner thigh.

"It was better. You weren't disappointed with me were you?" She rubbed his back.

"Not at all, babe, you were incredible." He bent down and kissed her for the hell of it.

She stared up into his eyes locked into an internal debate before she saw he felt the same way that she did. "I love you." She whispered so softly he almost didn't hear it.

"I love you too, Cricket." He replied before he kissed her again. He smiled against her lips. "You planned on seducin' me tonight, didn't ya?"

"I knew I was ready for you. I didn't want to wait any longer. I didn't need anything to make it special for me all that mattered was I wanted you to be my first." She smiled back.

He brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "Thank you for trustin' me enough to give yourself over to me completely."

"Thank you for making me a woman." She played with the stubble on his chin.

"As great as that was I think we need to get back before they miss us." He laughed.

"I know," She pouted.

He kissed the pout off of her face.

They both redressed quickly. They didn't want anyone to come looking for them.

"Do I look ok?" Maddie asked him.

"You look perfect no one will ever know that we were just rollin' 'round together in the hayloft." JC tucked his shirt into his pants and put his tie back on.

She reached for his hand. "Let's get back."

He took her hand and laced their fingers. "Let's go."

* * *

Rayna reached into the inner pocket of her father's suit jacket and stole his cigar case. "I'll be takin' that, thank you." She pecked his cheek.

"You're really good and drunk aren't you?" Lamar asked her. He'd come because June and had asked him and well he had started to think of Scarlett as family. It wasn't like he could turn down people that wanted to spend time with him.

"I can't confirm or deny that, daddy." She giggled.

"You're drunk, that's ok own it." He replied. He took the cigar he was puffing out of his mouth and offered it to her.

She took it from him and puffed on it. She blew a smoke ring. That was one of her hidden talents apparently. "These taste different. Did you switch brands?"

"It's supposed to be a new tobacco blend. I'm not sure if I like them yet." He replied.

"Stick to what you know is good. These taste too sweet." She shook her head.

"Rayna, what are you doin'?" Deacon looked at her amused.

"You know damn well what I'm doin'." She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Hey, careful with that thing, I don't want you burnin' my suit with that." Deacon smiled down at her.

"Do you have her handled?" Lamar asked him.

"Never, no one could handle Rayna Jaymes you know that as well as I do. I do have her taken care of though. I've seen her drunker." Deacon assured him.

"I'm gonna go find your momma and see if I can get her to dance with me." Lamar excused himself.

"I ain't even gonna comment on that, but I think it's possible that my daddy is sweet on your momma." Rayna slurred her words a little.

"God, I hope not." Deacon groaned. "Have you seen Maddie lately?" He changed the subject to something he could handle.

"No, but there is nothin' to worry 'bout, babe. She's at home and there is nothing bad that is going to happen to her. I'm sure she and Jimmy just took a walk or somethin'." She assured him.

"I wasn't worried I was just checking because she has to get on stage in a little while." He kissed her.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

It took Zoey all night, but she finally managed to get Rhett alone. They both happened to be at the bar at the same time.

"How is it that we both lived in Natchez our whole lives and never met?" She asked him.

"I don't know how that happened. I'm kinda lucky that it didn't. My last name is Claybourne you probably woulda put two and two together." He flashed her one of his best smiles.

"No, I always saw your name in the school paper, but I never made the connection. Given the fact that you look the way you look I just always assumed you weren't related." She smiled at him flirtatiously.

"I'm related alright. My brother and I could be twins." He laughed.

She touched his arm. "I'm not gonna lie you're hot as hell and you have to know that."

He blushed a little and cleared his throat. "Uh, thanks."

"I just thought I would tell you." She said before she walked off.

He shook his head a little confused as to what had just happened. "What the hell was that?"

"That was a drunk woman tryin' way too hard." Sadie said from beside him.

"I'm inclined to agree with that. She's my niece's friend I can't be screwin' my niece's friends. One because I'm only lookin' to have a little fun right now. And two because that's the only female friend Scarlett seems to have and I don't wanna be in trouble for hurtin' her. Also if I screwed my other two nieces' friends I would be in prison. Even though I've picked Maddie and Daph up from school and some of those girls look like they're my age." He joked.

"You have a sick sense of humor, Rhett." She shook her head at him.

"Let me buy you a drink it's the least I can do for my walkin' partner." He signaled to the bartender for two drinks.

"How do you know what I'm drinkin'?" She asked.

"You're a Jack and Coke with a vodka chaser." He recited from memory.

"I drink at the Mile Marker a lot and you're the bartender." She nodded in understanding.

"Exactly. I remember all my regulars' orders, but I especially remember yours." He grinned and handed her one of the drinks. He tipped the bartender.

"Why's that?" She sipped her drink.

"Deacon asked me to look out for you and make sure that no sketchy ass guys give you a hard time. I already did that anyway he didn't have to ask." He offered her his arm.

She looped her arm through his. "That's really nice of you."

"It's my pleasure." He walked her back over to the table where everyone with the exception of Maddie and JC was huddled up.

"That looks like trouble." Sadie commented.

"Trust me it is." Rhett sighed.

"Do you not see the way those two are lookin' at each other? Somethin' happened." Juliette said.

"They are always that lost in each other. Tandy calls them Rayna and Deacon part two." Avery reminded his wife.

"I don't know I think I have to agree with Juliette. There's something different about this look." Gunnar threw out there.

"Those two are always like this." Scarlett backed Avery.

"I don't know them well enough to comment, but it could go either way." Zoey offered.

"Will, go ask JC what's goin' on." Juliette urged.

"Why me?" Will sighed.

"Because you're his best friend. Be a good boyfriend and go find out for these nosy people if they did it. If I you do I promise to do that one thing to you that you really like later." Mack tried to bribe him with sexual favors.

"Ok, but I'm gonna play it cool." Will walked over and said something to JC.

JC blushed and looked down at his feet.

Will walked back over holding both his thumbs up. "They so did it."

"Son of a bitch. I'm out money on this." Gunnar threw a hundred-dollar bill down on the table.

"That's what happens when you bet against me." Juliette smirked at him.

"You're kiddin' me. You bet on my cousin's sex life?" Scarlett's mouth hung open.

"We weren't the only ones and if it makes you feel any better Tandy was totally in on this too." Avery supplied.

"This is why you always bet on the two little teenaged horn balls to do exactly what you think they will do." Rhett smirked.

"You too?" Scarlett asked.

"Hell yeah, me too. I knew that I could make some quick cash off of them." Rhett threw his head back and laughed.

"At least we are all goin' to hell together. We'll have fun between torture sessions." Sadie laughed. She found her eyes lingering on Rhett a little longer than they should have. She shook those thoughts from her head. It had been a long time, but she didn't need to go there with Deacon's baby brother.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I hope it was worth all the build up that led up to it. I also hope that I did Maddie and JC's first time justice for you guys. There's more good stuff where that came from. You're gonna find out what the deal is with Rayna and the cigars soon and let's just say I think you'll like it. Until next time please review.


	75. Chapter 75

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 75

Rayna laid on her side stretched out across the bed. She was propped up on her elbow. She wore a black nighty, she had Deacon's tie around her neck, and she had one of the cigars she'd taken from Lamar held between her teeth. Her long legs were crossed and her nighty rode up showing off her thigh.

Deacon walked out of the bathroom wearing just a pair of boxers. His hair was still damp from his shower. His eyes got wide and he instantly felt himself harden when he caught sight of his wife. "What is the world are you doin'?"

She took the cigar out of her mouth and smiled at him. "I thought you might be a little down 'bout givin' Scarlett away and could use some cheerin' up."

He grinned and bit his lip. "You are certainly right 'bout that. I could use your brand of cheerin' up. You also aren't as drunk as you led me to believe."

"I'm drunk, darlin' there is no question 'bout that. I'm just on the right side of drunk." She corrected him.

"You're on the side of drunk that makes you get all horny and sexy. The problem is you tend to get a little loud when you're in these moods." He replied.

"That ain't no problem at all. June took Daphne and the boys for the night. And I don't think we have to worry 'bout Maddie she's passed out in the music room which by the way is soundproof. We can be as loud as we want." She beckoned him over to her with a hooked finger.

"I love the way that sounds." He straddled her hips with his knees, took the cigar out of her hand, laid it on the nightstand, and kissed her.

"Mmm, I knew I'd get you to see things my way." She ran her hands over his bare chest.

He kissed her lips again and he drug his teeth down the hallow of her throat. He kissed the area of her chest that was exposed and he worked his way lower. He pushed her nightgown up her thighs. He smirked up at her. "I see someone chose to forgo panties."

"I was hopin' that puttin' 'em on would be a waste of time." She smirked back at him.

"You made the right choice." He kissed both of her inner thighs. "I don't know 'bout you, but I feel like it's been way too long since I tasted you."

"I agree, darlin', it's been such a long time." Her voice was almost plaintiff. She wanted him to go down on her so badly. She could feel his hot breath against her exposed pussy.

For his part he didn't need to be told twice. He flicked his tongue out and licked her clit. She was already wet for him. It wasn't going to take much work on his part. He spread her legs wider and ran his tongue back and forth along her slit.

"Jesus," She hissed through her teeth.

He pushed his tongue into her and pumped it in and out while he rubbed her clit. He knew from experience that she always came faster when she was drunk. Sometimes he took that as a challenge to beat his personal best time at getting her there. He switched his fingers and his tongue around. She always did like his fingers better inside her while he sucked on her clit.

She grabbed two handfuls of his hair and bowed her back so that her body arched up off the bed. She knew exactly what he was trying to do to her and she was loving every minute of it. A shiver ran through her body when he started to suck her clit. Her chest rose and fell rapidly. She was already there it wasn't going to take anything else on his part to send her over the edge. Her toes curled and she let out a high pitched scream as her orgasm tore through her body.

He gave her time to come down from her climax. He kissed her clit and crawled back up her body. He sat up on his knees the tip of his hard dick poking out of the fly of his boxers. "Did you wanna taste yourself?" His eyes sparkled.

"Damn right I do." If he wanted to play this game she was going to show him how it was done. She grabbed the hand he'd used to finger her and she sucked on the two fingers he'd had inside her.

His eyes darkened with lust and he moaned.

She slowly pulled his fingers from her mouth and smirked at him. "I think I need a better taste."

He grabbed the tie that was around her neck and used it to pull her up to him. He kissed her deeply and pushed his tongue into her mouth. He moaned into her mouth when she sucked on his tongue.

She pulled away from him breathing heavily. "I'd say that I taste damn good."

"I completely agree with you. That's why I like goin' down on ya so damn much." His dick jumped in his boxers. A wet spot had started to spread across them where he was leaking pre come.

She brushed her thumb across the exposed head of his cock and licked the drop of pre come away. "You taste pretty damn good too."

"Does that mean you're gonna use that hot little mouth to suck me off?" He asked her.

"I don't want you in my mouth I want you in my pussy." She whispered and licked the shell of his ear. She pushed his boxers down. She got up on her knees and put her hands on his shoulders.

He kicked his boxers off and pulled her to him. He put her knees on the outside of his hips.

She slowly sank down on his hardened length with a loud moan.

He tangled his one of his hands up in her hair and put the other on the back of her neck and kissed her deeply. He rocked his hips up into her in a steady tempo.

She bounced against him grinding her clit on his pubic bone.

"Christ, Ray," He groaned against her lips. His asscheeks dimpled as he thrust in and out of her. He sunk his teeth into the junction of her neck and collarbone. He bit, licked, and sucked until he left a purple hickey there.

She moaned loudly and locked her legs against his sides. She dug her fingernails into his back. She left long red scratches on his skin with her short nails. She moved her lips along his jawline.

He put his hands underneath her ass and lifted her up and down his dick. He threw his head back and moaned when she squeezed her walls around him.

"Mmm, babe, your cock is so damn big." She bounced on him harder.

"Fuck, babe, when you get that dirty mouth goin' you turn me on so much." He kissed her deeply. He reached between them and rubbed her clit quickly.

She squeezed around him again harder this time. "I want you to come so deep in me."

He moved his hips faster. The position they were in would overexert most men his age, but he still fucked like a man half his age. "I'm so, so close, Ray." He grunted as he tried to hold off his orgasm.

"Come for me, Freakin' Deacon." She whispered against his ear. She knew exactly what that would do to him.

He let out a primal growl as he started to empty his load into her.

Feeling his come fill her sent her over the edge into another orgasm.

They kissed each other sloppily their tongues dueling for dominance in each other's mouths. They pulled away breathing heavily and locked eyes. She pushed him down on his back and started to kiss down his chest and stomach. She paused for a moment to pay special attention to the scar on his abdomen. She licked and sucked it before moving down further.

She took his half hard cock in her hand and stroked him back to life. She lowered her head and took the tip into her mouth. She licked around it like an ice cream cone a few times before she moved her lips down his shaft.

He moaned out and grabbed a handful of her hair. He loved it when she got this aggressive with him. He bucked his hips up and down and began to fuck her mouth.

She gently drug her teeth over his length into her throat and hummed on him. She was trying to make him him come as quickly as she could. In her experience he always came faster the second time around if she worked him like this.

He could already feel the signs of his impending orgasm coming on. His muscles contracted and a warmth spread throughout his body. "I'm gonna come, babe!" He yelled out.

His words only made her suck harder. There was a rush of fluid into her mouth and she had to swallow quickly to make sure none of it escaped. When she was done she licked his dick clean and crawled back up his body. She planted a lingering kiss on his lips. "Feelin' any better?"

"I feel much better." He replied.

Rayna picked his dress shirt up off the floor and put it on.

Deacon rolled over on his side and watched her. "What are you doin'?"

She tossed his boxers to him and picked up the cigar from the nightstand. "Put those on and come with me."

He slipped back into his boxers and took her hand.

She led him out to the balcony that was attached to their bedroom. She pushed him down in a chair and sat on his lap. She lit the cigar and puffed on it to get it going.

"Babe, you gotta know how wild it drives me to see you puffin' on one of those." He told her.

"I'm well aware of what it does to you. Why do you think I'm doing it?" She chuckled softly and passed it to him.

He took a puff off of the cigar and passed it back to her. "It's been a long time since we've been this wild. We've kinda been stuck in our early years here lately."

"We have and it is so much better this time around. I don't have to worry 'bout keepin' you sober and we can just enjoy each other." She leaned against him. She held the cigar between her teeth.

"I oughta kick Vince right in the ass for ever givin' you one of those." He laughed.

"It was how we finally bonded. I came back to the apartment one day and he was drunk as usual. Somehow that led to us gettin' one of our famous poker games goin' and he told me I couldn't play properly unless I had a cigar. You shoulda seen the look on your face when you came home that day. He had me drunk and playin' cards." She recalled.

"I thought seein' your lips wrapped 'round that cigar was hot as fuck. But, I was so mad at him for gettin' you that drunk. He knew that you were young and couldn't handle drinkin' like that. I was up with you that whole night holdin' your hair back while you puked." He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Back then if anyone would have told me we would look back on the times we were dirt poor and barely scrapping by as the good ol' days I woulda told them that they were out of their minds. I'll be damned if I don't long for those simpler times when I'm rushing around trying to be a superstar." She replied.

"Those were some of the best times of my life. It was before the drinkin' got really bad and we had the whole damn world in front of us on a platter. I always knew that you'd make it. I wasn't so sure about myself, but I was determined if one of us was gonna survive it all it'd be you." He kissed her neck softly.

"I know that. You were always there to support me. You always have been no matter how far away I've tried to push you at times. Now, it's your turn. As much as I love being on the top of my game and in demand as an artist. I love seeing you experience the same success even more. I know that you could have had it sooner if it weren't for the fact that I needed you. But, babe, I will always be grateful that I got to do this with the man I love by my side." Rayna laid her head on his shoulder and looked up at him.

Deacon took the cigar away from her and puffed on it thoughtfully before he kissed her. "And I wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else. I chose my path and I'd make that same choice again today even knowin' what I do now. I like the fact that I've found success now and not back then. I woulda just pissed it all away. I'm older and I can appreciate things more." He took another puff on the cigar.

She smiled at him. "Do you ever miss it?"

"Miss what?" He looked confused.

"Smoking. You could burn through a carton of reds faster than anyone I know." She clarified.

"God yes I do. There are times when Maddie is bein' a pain in the ass typical teenager that I would kill for a cigarette. I enjoyed it as much as I did drinkin' so I knew I had to give that up too. And why does this taste funny?" He replied.

"Daddy said that it's a new blend of tobacco. I told him to stick with the ones he's always smoked those are just way too sweet." She answered him.

They sat out there talking and wrapped in each other's arms until the sun started to come up and they headed off to bed.

* * *

Maddie groaned and wiped the sleep out of her eyes as she walked into the kitchen. She sat on a stool and laid her head down on the counter.

"Mornin', sunshine, you don't look like you're getting around too good today." Rayna greeted her brightly. She now wore her Bluebird t-shirt and a pair of pajama pants. Despite the fact that she'd been drinking and had been up most the night she was still alert.

"Drinking is evil, mom." Maddie lifted her head off the counter.

"I know. That's why I don't do it often and if I do I don't drink much." Rayna opened the fridge and poured them both a glass of orange juice. "Here, drink that it'll help."

Maddie sipped the juice slowly. "Thanks, mom." She may have been a little hungover, but she still had to try to fight off a smile. She still wasn't so sure that last night had really happened.

"What's got you in such a good mood?" Rayna inquired.

Maddie looked around for Deacon. "Where's dad?"

"Sleeping in. I didn't wake him when I got up, because he lets me sleep in all the time. You're avoiding the question." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

Maddie broke out in a blinding smile. "JC and I made love last night."

"You used protection, right?" Rayna was glad she was close enough to her to open up like this.

"Yes, mom." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Was it everything you thought it would be?" Rayna grabbed the pancake mix out of the cabinet.

"It was better than I thought it'd be." Maddie got up to help her mom make breakfast.

"It wasn't awkward or anything like that?" Rayna got out a mixing bowl.

"No, he was so sweet and gentle with me. I really love him, mom." Maddie got the eggs and milk out of the fridge.

Rayna stopped what she was doing and took a deep breath. Her eyes watered and she used the front of her shirt to wipe her tears away. "That's really great, sweetheart."

"Mom, why are you crying? You aren't pregnant again are you?" Maddie looked confused. When Rayna was pregnant with the boys she had cried at the drop of a hat.

"No, no, I'm not pregnant. I'm just not ready for my little girl to be so grown up that she's having sex and saying she's in love with her boyfriend." Rayna sniffled.

"I'm always gonna be your daughter, mom. Nothing is ever gonna change how much I love and need you and dad." Maddie hugged her.

"I know that, sweet girl. It just really brings it home for me that you're not a baby anymore. Speaking of your father it would probably be for the best if we just let him think you're his virginal princess. Jimmy may have to go into witness protection if he figures out that he knows his baby girl in the biblical sense." Rayna kissed the top of her head.

"Dad is the last person that I want to find out that we had sex. I know that he almost killed Colt. I don't want to see what he does to JC." Maddie shook her head violently.

"Your daddy has a temper, but he didn't like Colt anyway." Rayna chuckled lightly. "Daphne and the boys are with your mawmaw they have big plans today and we won't see them until dinner time. What do you say to spending the day with your momma and daddy just the three of us? I don't think we've ever really done that before. At least not with you both knowin' that he's your daddy." She suggested.

Maddie smiled. "I think I fit you two into my schedule today. I would really like that, mom." She agreed.

"Oh, and we are so getting you that appointment to go on birth control. The last thing any of us need is you gettin' pregnant. I'm way too young and hot to be a grandma." Rayna bumped her hip against Maddie's playfully.

"God, mom, way to ruin the moment." Maddie blushed bright red.

* * *

Rhett put his arm over his eyes to block out the sunlight that was coming in the window. When that didn't work he reached for another pillow to cover his face with. His eyes widened in shock when he felt a warm body there instead of empty space. "Oh, what did I do last night?"

"I should be really insulted that you don't remember, but since we were both so drunk I'll give you a pass." A female voice said from behind him.

He rolled over on his side. "Sadie, I'm not even gonna ask."

"Hey, what did you move for? Your body was keepin' the sun out of my eyes." Sadie groaned.

"I moved 'cause I had no clue who I was in bed with and I wanted to make sure that I didn't do somethin' really stupid." He retorted.

"So, what's the verdict on that?" She asked.

"Uh, did I? Did we? What happened?" He stammered over his words.

"Well, we were both extremely drunk last night and you rode home with me to make sure I got here ok. You walked me to the door and that would have been the end of it had I not asked you in for a nightcap. One thing led to another and we ended up in this bed together." She explained to him.

"Uh, so did we you know?" He grabbed his forehead.

"Have sex? Yeah, we had sex more than a couple times last night." She confirmed.

"Sadie, if I need to apologize I will. I'm not normally like that." He turned red.

"Don't you dare apologize to me, Rhett. That was exactly what I needed. You didn't take advantage of me. If anythin' we used each other last night. You're the first guy I've really let in since everythin' that happened with my ex husband a few months ago." She waved off his act of contrition.

"In that case I guess you're welcome." He didn't really know what else to say to that.

"It was really, really fun and you were better than I think I've ever had, but you've kinda gotta go before it has time to sink in for me and I start to freak out." She smiled at him.

"Yeah, I think I better go before things get awkward." He got up and started getting dressed.

* * *

Rayna looked up when she heard someone knock at her office door. She smiled when she saw that it was Juliette on the other side. "Hey, girl, come on in and have a seat. I'm just finishing a few things up. This is what happens when you take a week off. It's hell to play catchup the Monday you come back." She waved her in.

Juliette walked in and sat down across from her. "Thanks for lettin' me come in without an appointment."

"Juliette, I have an open door policy with ya'll and you know that. You can come in here to talk anytime unless I'm in a meeting or on the phone. Or you know those blinds are shut in which case Deacon is probably in here and you don't wanna walk in on that. Tell me what I can do for you." Rayna replied.

"I'm supposed to go back out on Luke's tour in a few weeks and I just can't. I already missed so much of my daughter's life. It's not fair to ask Avery to put his album on hold to come out with me either." Juliette explained.

"So, you're wanting me to get you out of this tour? Do I have that right?" Rayna asked.

"Yes, I just wanna hang around Nashville and spend some time with my husband and daughter. I still wanna tour, but I wanna do it at my pace. Goin' out with Luke right after I gave birth was a bad idea. I just need some time to not feel like I'm bein' rushed." Juliette answered her.

"I'll get you out of your contract with him, but to do that I'm gonna have to tell him about your PPD. I know that you've been keeping that from getting out to the press, but that's the only way I can see to get you out without you havin' to buy your way out." Rayna leveled with her.

"I don't care tell him that I had to check myself into rehab for all I care as long as it gets me off this tour." Juliette was on the verge of begging.

"Don't worry I will take care of it." Rayna assured her.

"Thank you so much. I don't know why you continue to put up with me after everythin' I put you through." Juliette sighed in relief.

"You're a pain in the ass I'm not gonna dispute that, but you're my pain in the ass. If anyone is gonna give you hell for it, it's gonna be me. You're one of my artists and I take care of ya'll like you're one of my kids. I know that Luke is over there tryin' to build some kinda global brand or something and he doesn't have time to pay attention to what's goin' on around him." Rayna replied.

"If you tell anyone I said this I will deny it. But, since my momma died you've sorta become like my mom." Juliette admitted.

"Like I said you're a pain in my ass about like Maddie is. If that doesn't make you one of my girls I don't know what does." Rayna reached across the desk and put her hand on top of Juliette's.

* * *

"Rhett, thanks for getting in here so quickly." Lamar stood from behind his desk and greeted the young man.

"Thanks for workin' me into your busy schedule today." Rhett smiled and shook his hand.

"It's no problem at all. You and I have a lot of things to discuss." Lamar replied.

"Fire away,' Rhett told him.

Lamar poured them both a drink and handed one to Rhett. "To a long and mutual profitable partnership." He toasted.

"I'll drink to that." Rhett tapped his glass against Lamar's and took a sip.

"First things first. I've arranged a tryout for you. I know some people over at Vanderbilt and they have agreed to gather some of the baseball for you to play with. I'd understand if you wanted to practice a little first, but they are available whenever you're ready." Lamar told him.

"I'd need to get a little practice in first. It's been a couple of years since I played on a regular basis. I don't wanna get out there and look like a bum. You're takin' a chance on me and I want to prove that I'm worth it." Rhett took another drink.

"I've seen your stats and highlights of your games. I know that you're more than worth it. I wanted you for this team long before I found out that my daughter is your sister-in-law. The special election is tomorrow and that is just a formality at this point. Once that is over with and Coleman is in we will break ground on our new stadium. My boys will be working around the clock to get it finished in time for the start of next season." Lamar took out a cigar and lit it. Smoking laws be damned no one was going to tell him he couldn't smoke inside his own office.

"That sounds really good to me. Like I said just let me get a few days of practice in. I don't wanna get shown up by these college kids. I wanna show you that you couldn't pick a better play than me. I'm versatile. I can play wherever you want me to play. I'm way more than just a pitcher. I don't mean to brag, but I've got a pretty great bat too." Rhett talked himself up.

"Relax, you don't have to sell yourself to me at all. I just want to see what you can do out on that field in person. There's no doubt in my mind that you will come through for me. You've played at Vanderbilt's stadium before haven't you?" Lamar tried to put him at ease.

"I have we played them numerous times when I was with the Gators. I know the field well. I'd like three days to practice. You give me until Thursday and I will show up for a tryout then." Rhett bargained.

"Make it Friday just to give you a little extra time." Lamar was wooing him.

"It's a plan then. It'll give me time to buy some new equipment." Rhett wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I think that explained the cigar thing pretty well don't you? The CMAs are the next big thing coming up I know that you're all excited for those. There are just a couple of things to take care of before we get to those though. Until next time please review.


	76. Chapter 76

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 76

"Deacon, it's a pleasant surprise to see you came out today." Lamar greeted his son-in-law.

"I'm here as Rhett's cheerin' section. I've been workin' with him all week and I wanna watch him blow you away." Deacon replied.

"If the things I've heard about him are any indication I would say that we are going to be more than blown away." Coleman chimed in.

"It's good to see you, Mayor Carlisle. I would have thought you were too big and important for these things now." Deacon smirked.

"Not at all. This is for the good of the city. It's one of those things I think I need to be involved with." Coleman replied.

"You got the best of the best to play with him didn't you, Lamar?" Deacon wanted to make sure that his brother was going to get the chance to show off his full potential.

"Of course I did." Lamar confirmed.

Deacon nodded his head in acceptance of that. He clapped his hands when his brother got up on the pitcher's mound. "Come on, Rhett, let's go! Show him what you're made of!"

Rhett got on the mound and kicked the dirt with the toe of his show. He pulled his Florida Gator's cap low over his eyes. He picked the ball up in his left hand and tossed it a couple of times to get a feel for it. He put his fingers on the seams and threw a warmup pitch to the catcher.

"He looks really good out there." Lamar commented.

"I didn't know he was a southpaw. You've got yourself a left handed pitcher if he's as good as they say he is that's good for you." Coleman replied.

"Come on, Rocket! You've got this! Strike him out!" Deacon yelled when the batter stepped into the box.

Rhett threw three fastballs in a row that all ended up being called balls. He kicked the dirt and shook his head.

"That's alright, settle down and find your groove." Deacon cheered him on.

"It's just you and the catcher, Rocket. Don't worry about that batter he's not there." Mack called out as he walked up.

"Hey, Mack, what are you doin' here?" Deacon asked him.

"I promised Rhett that I'd come by and watch him if I got the chance. My coach really likes him so he let me go early to support him. I hope it's ok that I showed up." Mack explained.

"It's more than ok that you're here. It's good for him to have the support." Lamar assured him.

Rhett adjusted his hat and rolled the ball around in his hands for a minute. He put his glove back on and took a deep breath. He went into his wind up and threw another fastball right down the middle of the plate for a called strike.

"There you go, Rocket. Give me two more like that." Mack clapped his hands.

"How fast was that?" Lamar consulted the guy who was sitting behind the radar gun.

"That was a hundred and two miles an hour. The other three were all in the high nineties." He replied.

"Hot damn, that boy can play ball." Lamar could see dollar signs flashing in front of his eyes.

"Lamar, I know you don't mean anythin' by it and you know that you don't mean anythin' by it. But, there are people out there who would consider it a bit racist if you refer to him as boy." Deacon pointed out to him.

"I call everyone boy. You're a grown man and I still refer to you as boy." Lamar replied.

Rhett finally found his groove and he struck the batter out as well as the next two he faced.

"I think you bet on the right horse, Lamar." Coleman commented to him.

"I know I did. I don't pick losers." Lamar chewed on his cigar.

"If you think his pitchin' is somethin' special. You should see what he does with his bat, on the bases, and out in the field. I was good in my day, but he is so much better." Deacon talked his brother up.

"Then I think I'll change it up and see what he can do." Lamar smirked.

* * *

"Jeff, this better be good. I don't have time to waste today." Rayna said when she walked into the studio. She had brought the girls with her because they'd had a half day of school. Tandy had the boys in her office keeping an eye on them.

"You know I wouldn't have called you if I didn't have good reason. The less we have to deal with each other the better. Marcus is having doubts. He doesn't think that he can make it as a country artist. You need to talk him down off the ledge he's on." Jeff replied.

"I'll handle him." Rayna sighed. "Maddie, Daph, you guys do whatever it is you want just stay out of trouble and make sure that Jeff stays outta trouble. And, Jeff, don't get any ideas with these girls."

"I'm the picture of innocence. You have an iron clad contract with them and I wouldn't dream of doing anything to screw that up." Jeff smirked.

Rayna just rolled her eyes and walked over to Marcus. "What's the problem, Marcus?"

"I can't do this, Rayna. I don't know how I let you talk me into this. I'm not a country artist I'm a rocker. Everyone is going to think that I'm some imposter. Hell, I think I'm an imposter." Marcus stressed.

"Marcus, you're puttin' way too much pressure on yourself and on everyone else right now. You need to calm down. You have it in you to be an amazin' artist you just need to see that about yourself." Rayna advised him.

"I just don't think I can do it. My usual brand of music isn't going to carry over to the country audience." Marcus retorted.

"That's where you're wrong and I'm gonna prove it to you." Rayna got a determined look on her face. "Girls, come over here for a minute, please." She waved her daughters over.

"What do you need, mom?" Maddie asked.

"I want you and your sister to sing that song for him the way you arranged it." Rayna requested.

"Sure, mom, that would be awesome." Daphne agreed quickly.

Maddie and Daphne preformed the song like Rayna had asked.

"Well, Marcus, what did you think?" Rayna asked him.

"That may have been a better version of the song than the original. And I think that I see what you're saying. I can do this." Marcus replied.

"There you go, you have your answer then. Deacon has agreed to do a writing session with you. Why don't you go out to the record store and get his albums that way you have a feel for what you want to write with him?" Rayna suggested.

"Yeah, for sure, I can do that." Marcus agreed.

"Good, that's settled. Take the rest of the day off. That's an order not a request. I have many, many things other than you to deal with." Rayna put her foot down with him.

* * *

"Hey, Baby Brother, how did it go?" Beverly smiled brightly at Rhett from behind the bar.

"I think it went extremely well if I don't say so myself." Rhett sat down on a barstool.

"You shoulda seen him, Bev. He owned that field. He went out there and took command. It was brilliant." Deacon sang his praises.

"How long before you find anythin' out?" June asked.

"He said to come in on Monday and we would talk 'bout things. It was always my spot to lose and if anythin' I impressed him even more than he already was." Rhett grabbed a menu. After all that physical activity he was starving.

"That sounds very promisin'." June smiled. She'd taken it upon herself to keep an eye on him since he didn't have a momma anymore.

Deacon was up on stage messing around with some stuff.

"Deacon, what are you doin'?" Beverly asked him.

"I'm just makin' sure that everythin' is in workin' order. You know we start our concert series tonight and I don't want there to be any technical problems." Deacon replied. He was doing a series of concerts leading up to the CMAs.

"The tech just checked everythin' out this mornin' and gave us the green light. If there are any problems we will find them durin' sound check." Beverly assured him.

"I know that. I just want things to be perfect. We sold out for this." Deacon retorted.

"Deacon John, stop worryin' so much and come get somethin' to eat." June ordered him. He couldn't say no to her and she used that to her advantage.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

That night Rhett took his usual post behind the bar. At this point he was really there more to manage the other bartenders than he was to work.

"You look more like a bouncer than a bartender standin' there with your arms crossed." Sadie walked up to the bar.

"I'm just makin' sure things run smoothly." Rhett gave her a half smile.

"I figure that the two of us can only avoid each other for so long. What happened, happened and now we need to be adults about it." She told him.

"I couldn't agree more." He replied.

"So, in the spirit of friendship. Cause we are friends even if we are friends who have seen each other naked. I would like for you to be my date to the CMAs." She extended an olive branch.

"I've got nothin' else goin' on that night except bein' right here like I am every other night. I'd be proud to be your date." His smile broadened.

"We go as friends. What happened the other night probably shouldn't happen again. I adore and respect your brother too much that I don't wanna lose his friendship if somethin' went wrong between us." She clarified.

"Sadie, we are both grown ass adults. If somethin' were to happen between us and it went bad that would be on us. My brother would have no reason to get mad at you. It ain't like one of us is usin' the other or takin' advantage in any way." He scoffed.

"As you just pointed out. You are a grown ass man. I should hope that you're not standin' there suggestin' what amounts to a booty call agreement." She arched her eyebrow.

"I ain't suggestin' that at all. I was thinkin' more along the lines of friends with benefits. Neither one of us wants anythin' serious. You just had all kinda trouble with your ex and I just wanna have fun. We both benefit in this situation." He corrected her.

She thought it over for a minute. "What time do you get off?"

"I close down the bar like always, but I think under the right circumstances I could get outta here early." He grinned.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"So, Cricket, I got somethin' to tell you and you ain't gonna like it." JC sat at a table with Maddie, Will, and Mack.

"If you know I'm not gonna like it, why are you telling me?" Maddie asked him.

"Because it goes a little something like this. Casey and I had a bet she lost the bet, so in order to pay up I kinda made her wear a Longhorns t-shirt since she's an Aggie's fan. I just thought I would warn you." JC closed his eyes tightly and waited for the explosion of her temper.

"I don't care that you invited her, I don't care that you're talking to her. I care that you didn't tell me you were talking to her. It looks bad, JC. It looks like you have something to hide." Maddie glared at him.

"Cricket, you gotta know how much I love you and would never do anythin' to hurt you. I didn't mean anythin' by that. I'm sorry that I hurt your feelings." JC apologized.

"Apology accepted, I love you too." Maddie leaned over and kissed him.

"Aw look, Will, our little Maddie and JC are growing up and having a mature relationship." Mack teased. He fit right in with the group. He and Rhett got a long well because they were both athletes. And for whatever reason he and Maddie were pretty close.

"I know I'm so proud. They grow up so fast." Will pretended to wipe a tear away.

"You're both fuckin' assholes and I can't stand you." JC shook his head.

"Hey, you leave Mack out of this. He was just playing. You and Will do and say worse all the time." Maddie defended Mack.

"Oh God, my girlfriend has a gay best friend." JC muttered.

"You have a gay best friend you don't get to say anything about me." Maddie rolled her eyes.

JC ignored that comment and waved Casey over to the table when he saw her walk in. "Thank God, a sane person to save me from these people."

"I thought you were the leader of the insane asylum, Grayson." Casey joked.

"Ha, ha, you're so funny, Miller. Take the jacket off and show everyone your Longhorn pride." JC retorted.

Casey reluctantly took her jacket off and put the Texas Longhorns' shirt she was wearing on display. "Alright, get a good look at it because I'm burnin' it once I take it off."

"That is blasphemy you don't burn Longhorns' gear." Will protested.

"Not everyone is as crazy about the Longhorns as you and JC are." Mack pointed out to him.

"I don't care if this is a stupid bet or not. You ought to make this up to me by takin' me out and showin' me 'round town." Casey grumbled.

Maddie glared daggers at the back of her head. She wanted to like the girl really she did, but she made it hard when she was putting the moves on her boyfriend. In all fairness though it wasn't like that many people knew they were dating. "He's too busy doing whatever it is that he and Will do to have time for that."

"Right, I'm busy doin' promo stuff for my album right now. I'm lucky that I even have time to be here tonight." JC added quickly. The last thing he wanted was for Maddie to get into a cat fight.

* * *

Rayna and Tandy sat on either side of Rhett in a boardroom. Lamar had called him and wanted to meet to discuss his contract with his team. Neither one of them trusted their father not to try to screw him over, so they were there for his protection.

"Rhett, it looks like you've got yourself some pretty good representation for these negotiations." Lamar commented.

"They both insisted on comin' and I can't tell 'em no." Rhett shrugged his shoulders.

"Daddy, we know you and how you like to operate. I wasn't gonna take a chance with my husband's baby brother." Rayna arched her eyebrow at him.

"Daddy, make him an offer and get on with it." Tandy rolled her eyes.

Lamar pushed a contract across the table. "That's a two year five hundred-thousand-dollar contract with a hundred thousand dollar signing bonus. It's a great deal considering that we are a new team. There's an option in there that allows for you to be picked up by a major league team. I'll tell you that right now I'm in talks with the MLB to turn this into a pro team. If that happens I would like the first chance at scooping you up. I wouldn't be giving you such a big salary if you weren't so versatile out on the field. You're more than just a pitcher you can play any position on the field and you have a bat that needs to be in the lineup every day."

"Wow, that's a very generous offer." Rhett was floored he didn't know what else to say to that.

"I'll take that." Tandy took the contract and started to read over it.

"You're a very talented young man and I would like to keep you on this team if things go the way I want them too. I should warn you it's very rare that I don't get my way. I know that you're the first prospect that I've gotten to this stage with, but my people are working on other players right now. That being said I'd like for you to be team captain." Lamar offered.

"I have no idea what to say to that. I'd be honored to be the captain." Rhett replied.

"Rhett, he's charming you watch out." Rayna warned him.

"Rayna, you don't have to be like that. I recognize talent when I see it. This is my grandchildren's uncle I'm not going to screw him over." Lamar assured her.

Tandy held up a finger. "I've already found a problem with this contract."

"What is it?" Lamar asked.

"You have it here that you have first choice at picking him up and he can't consider another offer once you've made one. I want to change that. If you turn this into a major league team I will give you first shot at him, but you have to make him an offer that's on par with what he's being offered from other ball clubs." Tandy stipulated.

"I will have the contract revised." Lamar granted her point.

"Other than that I don't see any problems with this contract. You must really want him on this team." Tandy retorted.

"I do," Lamar confirmed with a nod of his head.

"Daddy, does this team even have a name yet?" Rayna asked him out of curiosity.

"Not yet it's one of the things that I'm working on. They broke ground on the stadium and I have no clue what I'm calling that yet either." Lamar answered.

"I have a proposal if you're willing to hear it." Rayna told him.

"I'm open to anything at this point." Lamar replied.

"Cumberland River Memorial Stadium. Momma had that property that sits on the Cumberland and she loved it. I think it would be a good way to honor her memory." Rayna suggested.

"I think that's perfect actually. That is the name of the stadium." Lamar agreed with her.

"If that's what you're gonna call the stadium then maybe the team should be called the Rivermen." Rhett threw out there.

"The Nashville Rivermen." Lamar chewed the name over for a minute and he had to admit that he liked it. "The Rivermen it is."

"Daddy, there is one other thing with this contract. You have him down as a starting pitcher. You said yourself that he's too valuable a player to keep in that position." Tandy questioned.

"Starting pitcher is just listed as his primary position. If he's not pitching he will more likely than not be in the outfield or on third base. His salary reflects the number of positions that he plays. I'm not offering anyone else nearly as much money on a two-year contract." Lamar reassured her.

"If that's the case I'd say that our business here is done." Tandy looked up from the contract.

"I will have the revised contract sent over for you to sign. I however want to make a big deal out of this team. So, you and the rest of the players I have on the hook right now will be signing your contracts at the mayor's office on live TV. I of course want you to sign that contract now and it'll just be for show later. Between now and then I will come up with jerseys and hats with the appropriate logos on them. I just want to double check the spelling of your last name to make sure that we have it right." Lamar explained.

"C-L-A-Y-B-O-U-R-N-E," Rayna spelled out for him. "You wouldn't believe the way I've seen the spelling of that name butchered. That's almost as bad as Jaymes. I was forever having to tell someone that there was a Y in there. With Claybourne they like to make the Y an I and leave the U out."

"That'll be fine, daddy. Just have it sent over to me by messenger. I want to check it over again before he signs it. From now on though you will be dealing with his agent. Bucky is trying to hook him up with this sports' agent he knows." Tandy threw out there.

"That sounds fine to me." Lamar agreed. "Tandy, are you sure that I can't get you to be my front office CEO or my GM?"

"Daddy, we are actually getting along right now and I don't want to rock the boat by working with you again. I'm happy being CFO at Highway Sixty-five. It's as good as being CEO since your other daughter doesn't pay much attention to that side of the business anyway." Tandy replied.

"I have better things to do than be bogged down by paperwork and meetings. I am a touring artist." Rayna defended herself.

"Let me ask you this question. What do you two think of Jeff Fordham? He's been sniffing around since he found out about this team." Lamar asked them.

"You know how I feel about Jeff. I can't stand him. He's a shark and he will do whatever it takes to fatten the bottom line." Rayna gave him her honest assessment.

"In other words you would get along well with him. As much as I hate to admit it he's been really great with Marcus. And he does make sound business decisions. I wouldn't trust him any farther than I could throw him, but if you keep that in mind you should be fine. Besides, no one in their right mind would screw Lamar Wyatt over." Tandy added.

"I will keep that in mind." Lamar nodded his head thoughtfully. "Would you two very much mind giving us the room?" He asked Rayna and Rhett.

"Come on, Rhett, we don't want to be here for this." Rayna led the younger man out of the room.

"What do you want, daddy?" Tandy rolled her eyes at him.

"I've gone over and over it in my mind trying to figure out who could have ratted me out to the feds. It wasn't Cole he wouldn't have jumped at the chance to get back into business with me knowing that he'd betrayed me. And it wasn't Teddy. If he could let himself be blackmailed that easily over a hooker there's no way he brains enough to sell me out. Besides that he didn't know enough about my operations to do any real harm." Lamar said conversationally.

"What are you getting at, daddy?" Tandy stared him down. She didn't want to back down from him or show any weakness.

"I'll say this had my daddy passed me over for CEO in favor of someone else, especially someone that wasn't family I wouldn't have been very happy. I probably would have done whatever I could have to get back at him. And considering that I had my hands in whatever he was involved in. I would have done what I could to keep my own fat out of the fire." He spoke slowly his words measured.

"I have no clue what you're talking about." She denied.

"I know it was you who sold me out to the Feds, Tandy. You're the only one who would have been pissed off enough at me to do it. And you're the only one out of my three suspects that refuses to work with me." He arched his eyebrow at her.

"If it makes you feel any better I recanted I told them that the evidence I had against you was obtained illegally after I quit working here." She wasn't even going to try to deny it anymore. All she could do was come clean to him and let the chips fall where they may.

"I know why you did it I even understand I guess. Almost dying puts things into perspective for a man. If I were you I'd be careful though they still have evidence against you and they are probably chomping at the bit to get their teeth into you." He warned her.

"Let them come after me. They are going to have a hard time proving anything. I've gone totally legit." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Just out of curiosity what did they have that made you turn?" He asked.

"They told me that you were there the night of mom's accident. That you ran her off the road." She told him.

"I was there the night of your momma's accident, but you have to believe that I would have never done anything to hurt her I loved her too much. I came back to the house just as she was leaving. I followed her. I of course knew where she was going. It was raining out that night and she took the turn too fast. It was an accident nothing more. I've done some really despicable things in my life, but killing my wife and the mother of my children wasn't one of them." He told her firmly.

Tandy took a deep breath. "If it's any consolation I've kept that information to myself. Rayna doesn't know anything about it. If she did you could be damn sure that you two wouldn't be on good terms right now. She probably wouldn't let you anywhere near those kids if she knew about it. Call me stupid or crazy or whatever you want to, but I believe you. So, I'm going to continue to keep this secret for you. It serves no one if it gets out."

"Thank you," Lamar looked at her gratefully.

She stood up to go. "I'm not doing it for you, daddy. I'm doing it for Rayna. She has mom on a pedestal in her mind and I don't want to ruin the image for her. I also don't want to destroy the relationship that she's built with you. Like it or not you both need each other and as the oldest it's my job to keep this family together."

"I'm grateful anyway. I know that you say that you're happy where you are now, but I want you to know that when I retire the company is yours if you want it." He showed her that all was forgiven.

"That's a long time away and we both know it. They will probably wheel your cold dead body out of this office. I'll think about it though." She replied.

"The offer is on the table any time you want it." He responded.

"Daddy, not now." She said as she walked out of the boardroom.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know that this chapter wasn't really that exciting and there wasn't much going on, but this was needed to wrap a couple of things up before I move on to the CMAs next chapter. I know that you are all looking forward to that. I promise you that I won't disappoint. Until next time please review.


	77. Chapter 77

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 77

Little Deacon and Jayme sat in the middle of their parents' bad babbling to each other. They were already in their pajamas and they had just had a bath. Deacon stood in font of the mirror behind Rayna and fixed his tie. Rayna was standing in front of the mirror looking herself over to make sure she looked perfect. She fluffed her hair out a little bit and then turned around.

"How do I look, boys?" She addressed her husband and sons.

"Well, I'd say you're one hot momma." He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Momma," Little Deacon giggled.

"Momma, momma," Jaymes chimed in.

"Don't you two start being that adorable right now. You're enough to make momma forget all about the CMAs and stay home in my sweatpants with you." She kissed them both all over their little faces and they laughed. "You boys are so lucky that I haven't applied my last coat of lip gloss yet."

"They're worth messin' your lips up over. I have a black suit and tie on. I don't plan on gettin' anywhere near Jayme until after the awards. Mr. Man will spit up and I'll have to change." He laughed.

"Daddy, how can you resist these two cute little faces?" She stuck her bottom lip out.

"I can't resist any of ya'll that's the problem. Every last single one of you has me wrapped 'round your little finger. But, I wouldn't have it any other way." He smiled.

She got a wistful look on her face and teared up. "This time a couple years ago I was waiting on you to come pick me up and you never showed. Instead a lie I'd told for thirteen years blew up in my face and almost cost us this. Last year because I pushed you away, because I'd hurt you and you hurt me back the only way you could we weren't together on this night. Not officially anyway. I was engaged to another man and pregnant by you once again. I had to put on a brave face for the cameras and pretend that I actually was happy to be there with him. This is a very important night for us it doesn't matter if we win or not, 'cause we've already won. We got all this. Two years ago I wouldn't have thought this was possible. And I almost made us miss out on it because I was scared. I'll never regret the night in the living room when I finally chose you."

He blinked his eyes rapidly to clear the tears away. "I'm gonna break rules just this once and I'm gonna mess up your lips." He crossed the room and kissed her deeply.

"I love you." She told him.

"I love you too." He kissed her again. He might as well really mess her lips up if she was going to have to reapply her lipstick anyway.

"That was so worth having to reapply my lip gloss. I oughta let you do that more often." She smiled at him.

"I'm always happy to oblige." He grinned back.

"I'm gonna go put another coat of lip gloss on. Why don't you go check on the girls and make sure that they are ready? It's almost time to go." She suggested.

"I'm pretty sure those two girls started gettin' ready before you and they are waiting on us." He laughed.

She sat down at her vanity and reapplied her lip gloss. "How exactly did Daphne con you into lettin' her come tonight? I understand that Maddie has to go she's got two songs nominated."

He smiled to himself she still had no clue what they had planned for her. "Two words, Ray. 'Daddy, please' and she stuck out that bottom lip. I was a goner. I Couldn't say no."

"You spoil them rotten, Deacon John. I feel sorry for any man our girls marry they are gonna expect the world cause daddy gave it to them." She laughed softly.

"You just watch the babies while I go check on the big babies." He excused himself from the room.

Maddie and Daphne were both in Maddie's room when Deacon went to check on them.

"Ya'll ready? You have everythin' down like we planned it?" He whispered.

"We've got it, dad." Maddie assured him.

"She's gonna be so surprised, daddy." Daphne grinned excitedly.

"She will be. Ok, the nanny is here and we gotta be out that door in twenty minutes. You both know where you're sittin' right?" Deacon checked his watch.

"Yes, we know." Daphne confirmed.

"And you know what you're gonna say?" He double checked.

"Dad, we know what to say. You need to chill out. This is perfect and mom is gonna love it." Maddie put her hands on his shoulders. "Now, get out and go get her. She takes longer to get out the door than I do." She laughed.

* * *

"Did, we do the right thing letting them walk the red carpet by themselves?" Rayna chewed on her bottom lip nervously. She and Deacon sat in the limo waiting to get the green light to walk the red carpet.

"Ray, we are walkin' before them and we will be right there at any signs of trouble. Neither one of them is alone. Maddie is walkin' with Jimmy and Will is escortin' Daphne because he and his boyfriend are dysfunctional. I still don't understand why they couldn't come together. Mack is presentin' for God's sake." Deacon put his hand on her knee.

"Because Mack isn't out that's why. He doesn't try to hide his sexuality, but he's never come out. He doesn't give a damn about pictures of them popping up all over the internet, but if he comes as Will's date then he has to confirm it to the press and then that takes away from his skills as a hockey player. Don't ask I got the rundown the other day from Maddie while we were getting our nails done." She replied.

"I live in a soap opera and that's all there is to it." He shook his head.

An attendant knocked on their window and he lowered it. "Ms. Jaymes, Mr. Claybourne, we are ready for you now."

"Here goes nothin'." Deacon opened the door with a smile plastered on his face. He gave her his hand and helped her out of the limo.

Rayna got out smiling and waving to the crowd her engagement ring and wedding band sparkling in the light. "Just smile and wave, darlin', you've got this."

They walked down the red carpet stopping to pose for pictures and answer questions along the way.

"Here we have country music power couple Rayna Jaymes and Deacon Claybourne." A reporter introduced them.

"I don't know 'bout all that now." Deacon smiled.

"We don't think of ourselves that way at all. We're happy just to be together and get to do what we love." Rayna added.

"This is your first really major event together as a married couple. You both have multiple nominations tonight. You're obviously doing something right together." The reporter went on.

"We've always done our best work together whether it be our music or our kids we make really great things." Deacon replied.

"I couldn't agree with him more on that one. He's a little modest, but he forgets to add our label to the list. Highway Sixty-five wouldn't run as smoothly as it does without both of us." Rayna flashed a smile.

"That's the real story here tonight a Highway Sixty-five artist is nominated in every category that is very impressive." The reporter commented.

"I get to brag on my husband for a change. He's our most nominated artist tonight." Rayna put her hand on his chest.

"Everyone remembers the way you cleaned up last year. If history repeats itself, you're gonna need a little more shelf space." The reported laughed.

"If we are lucky enough to take home even a couple of those statues then I'm sure that at least one of them is gonna have to be displayed in our office. Especially if it's mine it's time that one of the men of Highway Sixty-five got into the fight. These insanely talented women need someone to keep them honest." Deacon joked.

"What's it like being married to your boss?" The reporter asked.

"It's the greatest thing in the world." He answered without any hesitation.

"We've never really had the boss employee relationship. We've always been equal partners and that bond has only gotten stronger since we got married." Rayna added.

"It's hard to believe how far you have come so fast. This time last year you were still engaged to Luke Wheeler and now you're working on a year of marriage." The reporter commented.

"We've been married for almost eleven months now and it's just unreal. Sometimes I have to be reminded that this is really happenin'." He gazed lovingly at Rayna as he spoke.

"Speaking of the things you two have done together how does it feel to have your daughter nominated for an award tonight?" The reporter questioned.

"Now, that is unreal. It seems just like yesterday that the doctor put her in my arms and now she's this amazing young woman with a talent that's all her own." Rayna answered with a smile.

"There aren't words to describe how proud I am of her. How proud I am of all three of my girls. You're gonna be seein' a lot more of them for years to come." He beamed with pride.

"I of course have to ask about the other Claybourne brother and arguably Nashville's most eligible bachelor right now." The reporter dug for information about Rhett.

Deacon threw his head back and laughed. "You wanna know 'bout that you'll have to talk to Rhett. I'm sure he'll get a kick outta bein' called that."

"One more question before I let you two go. Any predictions about who is gonna win these categories?" The reporter asked one last question.

"About A Girl takes album of the year no doubt about it." Rayna predicted. She took Deacon's hand and they walked inside the door to wait for the girls.

"Come here and let me fix that tie for you. I can't have you lookin' a mess when we walk that red carpet." Sadie grabbed Rhett's tie and fixed it.

"Alright, now that you got me fixed up let's do this." Rhett grabbed her hand and helped her out of the limo. "You're probably the one that messed it up anyway." He whispered with a smirk.

"Keep it up and I won't be takin' it off of you later." She whispered back and allowed him to lead her down the red carpet.

They posed for pictures and Sadie stopped to answer a few questions before they went inside.

"It is a circus out there. You'd think they'd never seen two people come to an awards show as friends before." Rhett said when they met up with Rayna and Deacon.

"Rhett, since the press conference where you signed to the Rivermen you've become Nashville's newest hot thing. That's why they are putting all that attention on you. It has nothing to do with the state of whatever this is between you and Sadie." Rayna informed him. Those two didn't fool her for a second she knew that there was something going on between them.

"Just keep your mouth shut when you think you're gonna say somethin' that wouldn't be wise. That's how I've learned to handle the press." Deacon advised him.

"There is nothing between us we are just friends." Sadie protested.

"I don't say anythin' to them I just smile and nod." Rhett assured his brother.

"Did you see the girls out there?" Rayna questioned nervously. She was more open with the press now, but she was still leery about the girls being questioned.

"I haven't seen them yet, but I'm sure that they are fine. Maddie can handle herself trust me on that one. And Will won't let anyone do anythin' to Daph." Rhett swore to her.

"You must see this whole other side of Maddie that I don't even want to know 'bout." Deacon groaned.

"I'll just put it to you this way she's a Claybourne let's leave it at that." Rhett chuckled.

"Here with us now are The Exes and real life newlyweds Gunnar Scott and Scarlett O'Connor." One of the correspondents on the red carpet stopped Gunnar and Scarlett as they walked in.

"It's really great to be here tonight." Scarlett took everything in.

"Where have you two been hiding lately?"

"We haven't been in hiding so much as on our honeymoon. Then we got right back into the studio to work on our album. We've been pretty busy lately." Gunnar chuckled.

"Any plans to change the name of your group?" The reporter asked them jokingly.

"We tried going for The Ex Exes, but our head of A and R gave us a look that we took to mean we were out of our minds." Scarlett answered.

"Any update on when we are going to get that album from you?"

"We aren't too far off from being finished. Look for it to come out soon." Gunnar handled that question.

"Excuse me for a second there's someone I have to say hi to." Scarlett excused herself when she saw Maddie walk down the carpet with JC. "Maddie, look at you." She hugged her.

"Hey, Scarlett, you act like you don't see me every day." Maddie hugged her back laughing.

"I don't normally see you lookin' like this. He let you outta the house wearin' that without a fight?" Scarlett laughed.

"He wasn't crazy about it, but mom told him to let it go." Maddie replied. Her eyes darkened when she saw Casey approach JC.

"Maddie, we are in public control your facial expressions." Scarlett advised her.

"I know I'm behaving." Maddie said through gritted teeth.

"JC, is there something going on between you and Casey?" A reporter called out.

"No, not at all. We are just friends that recorded a song together." JC answered quickly. He'd forgone his cowboy hat tonight and his jet black hair stood up. He waved Maddie over and had her pose for a picture with him and Casey.

"Come on, JC, you can't leave us hanging. Which one of them are you dating?" Another reporter yelled.

"I'm datin' both of 'em." JC joked he linked arms with Maddie and walked into the arena.

Maddie shot him a dirty look.

"I know, you're pissed. We've been keepin' this quiet. We may not be able to do that anymore." JC told her lowly.

Finally, Daphne and Will made their way into the Bridgestone.

"Everyone knows where they are sittin' and everythin' like that. Just go 'bout your business and don't get into any trouble." Deacon warned them. Sometimes he felt like he had to father that whole group and not just Maddie and Daphne.

"We've got it, Deacon. You don't have to keep remindin' us." Will promised him.

"Everyone, just get to where you need to be. I can't be worryin' with ya anymore tonight." Deacon sighed.

"We've got it." JC said.

Deacon winked discreetly at Maddie and Daphne. They knew what to do when the time came.

* * *

" _Hey, pretty girl won't you look my way? Love's in the air tonight. You can bet you'll make this ol' boy's day. He, pretty girl won't you look my way?"_ Avery had been tapped to preform his new single.

" _Hey, pretty girl can I have this dance and the next one after that? Gonna make you mine there's a real good chance. Hey, pretty girl can I have this dance?"_ He'd written this song about Juliette while he was out on the road.

" _Hey, pretty girl it feels so right just like it was meant to be. All wrapped up in my arms so tight. Hey, pretty girl it feels so right."_ He met Juliette's eyes in the crowd.

" _Life's a long and winding ride better have the right one by your side. And happiness don't drag it's feet. Time moves faster than you think."_ He strummed his guitar.

" _Hey, pretty girl wanna take you home. My momma's gonna love you. She'll make me sleep on the couch I know. Hey, pretty girl wanna take you home."_

" _Hey, pretty girl let's build some dreams and a house on a piece of land. We'll plant some roots and some apple trees. Hey, pretty girl let's build some dreams."_

" _Life's a long and winding ride better have the right one by your side. And happiness don't drag it's feet. Time moves faster than you think."_ He closed his eyes as he sang.

" _Hey, pretty girl you did so good our baby's got your eyes. And a fighter's heart like I knew she would. Hey, pretty girl you did so good."_

" _Hey, pretty girl when I see the light and it's my time to go. I'm gonna thank the lord for a real good life. A pretty little girl and a beautiful wife."_ He finished softly.

Much to Deacon's chagrin he and Rayna had been seated next to Luke. He'd been in hopes that this wouldn't happen, but it was rare that he got what he wished for.

"Hey, Freakin' Deacon, good luck tonight. If anyone has earned this it's you." Luke offered politely.

"You too, Wheels Up." Deacon returned the sentiment.

"I'm glad to see that we are all getting along right now. If I have to sit between you two all night you're gonna behave." Rayna warned them.

"I'm just here to rack up some more shelf bling." Luke told her.

"I ain't got no reason to fight with him." Deacon promised.

"Good, we are on national tv. We all need to be on our best behavior." Rayna smiled tightly. She was less than thrilled about the seating arrangement too.

"Hey, ya'll, it's good to be back hosting this year." Carrie Underwood opened up the show.

"Apparently we didn't screw up too badly last year. Even if we did manage to put an end to Ruke." Brad Paisley picked up.

Rayna shook her head and laughed. She had to laugh or she would go crazy. She dug her nails into Deacon's thigh in a warning for him to behave and play along.

"I don't think we can take credit for that, Brad. Deacon did that all on his own. Those twins look even more like him in person than they do in pictures." Carrie deadpanned. Her husband Mike and Mack were on the same hockey team, so she had seen the boys in person.

Deacon laughed at that line, because he was really proud of himself for making those boys.

"They opened a special bar backstage this year just for Luke. If things go as badly for him as they did last year he's going to need it." Brad started in on Luke.

"That's not the way I heard it. I heard that they just ordered him his own barrel of whiskey this year. He almost found the bottom of the barrel last year." Carrie corrected him.

Luke laughed, but his cheeks were tinted red. His behavior last year had been absolutely appalling.

"We should get on with the show before they decide not to ask us back next year." Brad shifted gears.

"Our first category tonight is Musician of the Year." Carrie announced.

"And the nominees are. Tim McGraw, Keith Urban, Miranda Lambert, and Deacon Claybourne." Brad read off the list of names.

Carrie opened the envelope. "And the winner is Deacon Claybourne."

Deacon smiled brightly and leaned over to kiss Rayna. He got to his feet and walked up on the stage to accept his award. "I can't tell ya'll how much this award means to me. I wanna thank God, my fans, and of course my family. I wouldn't be here right now without any of them." He kept his speech short and sweet.

He passed his statue off to one of the stagehands to go have his name engraved on it.

Faith Hill took the stage to present Music Video of the Year. "The nominees for Music Video of the Year are Will Lexington, Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney, Carrie Underwood, and Sam Hunt." She read off. She took a moment to open the envelope. "And the winner is Will Lexington, Spinning Revolver."

Will gave Daphne a big hug and he got up to accept his award. "First and foremost I want to thank my fans I've put you guys on roller coaster this year, but you've stuck by me. A big thank you goes out to Rayna for pushing me to always be my best. I wanna thank Deacon for always bein' willin' to give me a jumpstart when I need it. And I want to thank the rest of my amazin' family for standin' by no matter what."

"Juliette Barnes Mississippi Flood, and Will Lexington and JC Grayson Beer for My Horses." Mack finished reading off the nominees for Musical Event. He opened up the envelope. "And the winner is Will Lexington and JC Grayson Beer for My Horses." There was just a touch of pride in his voice. Even though he wasn't ready to go public with Will didn't mean that he didn't want to see him succeed.

Will and JC walked up onto the stage together.

"We want to thank our fans for gettin' us here and our amazin' Highway Sixty-five family for givin' in to our every whim." Will spoke for them both.

"After that I think there is just one thing we have left to say." JC shared a look with Will.

"Texas Forever," They whooped into the mic and flashed bull horns with their fingers.

"They couldn't help themselves could they?" Deacon leaned over and whispered to Rayna.

"No, they couldn't. I'm really surprised that they took that over Juliette." Rayna whispered back.

"We knew that Juliette would be a long shot this year. Don't worry she's makin' a comeback." Deacon reassured her.

"I'm making you deal with her when she comes storming into the office throwing a fit." Rayna told him.

"The nominees for Song of the Year are, Luke Wheeler If I Drink This Beer, Luke Bryan Kill the Lights, Jason Aldean Burnin' It Down, and Deacon Claybourne Just As I Am." Sadie read the names off. "And the winner is Deacon Claybourne Just As I Am." She read after she opened the envelope.

"Way to go, babe." Rayna threw her arms around Deacon's neck and kissed him.

Deacon climbed up on stage with a huge smile on his face. Truthfully he'd expected this award. With all the fuss that had been made about that song he would have been more surprised if he hadn't won. He hugged Sadie.

"Good job, Big Brother." Sadie whispered in his ear.

"Thanks, Little Sister." Deacon replied. He stepped up to the podium and cleared his throat. "This one is for my kids. Scarlett, Maddie, Daphne, Deac, and Jayme. Anytime anyone tells you that somethin' can't be done you keep pushin' on and you prove them wrong. Anytime you face somethin' that's bigger than you, you put it in God's hands and you have him help you fight. And then you call me and I'll be there to catch you when you fall whether it's a thousand miles away or right up the road. I love ya'll so much."

He'd just said the first thing that popped into his head. He caught Rayna wiping her eyes in the front row. He couldn't see his other girls, but he knew they were there and they had heard him. That speech had been deep and touching even if he hadn't meant for it to be.

Rayna met him backstage since they were taking a break. "You are damned and determined to make me have to redo my makeup tonight."

"What I do now?" Deacon asked innocently.

"That speech was probably the sweetest thing that I've ever heard." She put her arms around his neck.

"I meant every word of it. That goes for our whole family blood, adopted, and by marriage. There's never a place too far for me not to show up if one of ya'll need me. I'd move heaven and earth to get to you." He spoke from his heart.

"Don't you go using up all your words on me, Deacon Claybourne. If the academy sees in you what I see then you're gonna be needin' them 'cause you've got a few more acceptance speeches to make." She kissed him deeply.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. I decided to break the CMAs up into a couple chapters to really do them justice. I hope you like what I've got down so far and there is way more to come. Until next time please review.


	78. Chapter 78

A/N:Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 78

"Ya'll best believe that I didn't think I'd be up here talkin' to you again. I have to thank my incredible team over at Highway Sixty-five. My poor assistant does the work of a manager and he always makes sure I get to where I need to be on time. Emily, you know that I wouldn't even be organized if it weren't for you. Buck, thanks for not pushin' back against me when I say I wanna go somewhere a little crazy with a sound for one of my songs. Ray, you do more for me than I can put into words and I'm grateful." Deacon accepted the award for Single of the Year. He really wasn't sure what else to say at this point. He blew Rayna a kiss and exited the stage.

"Alright, everyone grab a shot. We only have so long before we have to be back in our seats." Rhett passed out shots to everyone. He, Sadie, Will, Mack, Scarlett, Gunnar, Avery, and Juliette were at the bar.

"To a night we won't remember with people we will never forget." Mack toasted and they threw back their shots.

"I thought I asked ya'll to behave yourselves. You ain't at the Mile Marker yet you need to be careful and not get too drunk here." Deacon walked up on them.

"There he is the man of the hour. You're cleanin' house out there." Juliette hugged him.

"Thanks, Juliette. I don't even know what to say anymore. I don't think I've skipped over anyone." Deacon really wasn't used to being in the spotlight like this. He was the sideshow and he was good with that.

"We better get back out there. Duet of the year is up next and we can't miss that. I'm prayin' that it's Maddie and Jimmy that win otherwise I don't see this endin' well for Casey." Scarlett sighed.

"She's territorial like her daddy she'll learn young that she can't always be swingin'." Deacon chuckled. "Will, I'm proud of you, boy."

"Thanks, Deacon, wouldn't be here without you. I would have wallowed in Kevin's place forever if I could have." Will replied.

"Alright, I'm goin' out there. Please don't get drunk and embarrass yourselves and the label. You can get drunk at the after party." Deacon gave them one last word of warning.

"There you are, Mr. Superstar." Rayna took his hand when he reclaimed his seat.

"I ran into the kids backstage and I had to remind them to be on their best behavior. They were doin' shots at the bar." Deacon replied.

"Alright, Freakin' Deacon, you've cleaned house out there and they have all been well deserved, but the next two are mine." Luke joked around with him.

"I didn't come here to lose. In your dreams is album of the year yours." Deacon teased right back.

"I may let you have album of the year, but male vocalist of the year is mine." Luke laughed.

"We'll see 'bout that, Wheels Up." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

The lights dimmed in the arena.

"Here we go this is the big one." Rayna gripped his hand tightly.

"I know, she's got this, Ray." Deacon laced their fingers together.

Carrie and Brad came back out on stage.

"You know; I didn't know that we'd be giving a lesson in genetics this year." Brad made an off the wall comment to Carrie.

"What are you talking about now, Brad?" Carrie rolled her eyes at him.

"I didn't know that love triangles were hereditary. We had the Luke-Rayna-Deacon triangle play out last year." Brad started to explain himself. The camera zoomed in on the three people in question. "And it looks like the apple didn't fall far from the tree we've got the teenage version of that playing out with Maddie, JC, and Casey. They've both been making googly eyes at him all night."

Rayna sighed in relief when Maddie laughed it off. "Good girl, Maddie." She whispered under her breath.

"That's my girl. Smile, nod, and laugh it off." Deacon took a deep breath. Maddie was as volatile as he was. He never knew how she was going to react.

"I don't know what I did so wrong that I got stuck with you, but I'd like to know who I have to apologize to." Carrie teased Brad. "On to our next presenter of the evening, Will Lexington."

Will stepped up behind the podium. "This next award is a new category this year. And since I didn't screw up last year they decided to let me present again." He paused to let the laughter die down and he started to read the names of the nominees.

JC sat in the middle of Maddie and Casey. Each girl took one of his hands and squeezed it.

Rayna and Deacon kept their hands clasped together tightly.

"Think of You JC Grayson and Casey Miller, and Traveling Soldier JC Grayson and Maddie Claybourne." Will finished reading.

Deacon took a deep breath and held on to Rayna's hand a little tighter.

Will opened up the envelope. "And the winner is JC Grayson and Maddie Claybourne Traveling Soldier."

JC jumped to his feet and pulled Maddie into a hug. "This is amazin', Cricket."

"I know," Maddie was at a loss for words.

They walked up on stage holding hands.

"That's our baby girl, Deacon." Rayna put her hand over her mouth and teared up.

"That's our girl, Ray." Deacon agreed.

Will quickly hugged both of his friends.

"Wow, I'm so honored to be up here accepting this award tonight. First and foremost, I need to thank my baby sister, Daphne. This award is as much yours as it is mine. The time we've spent singing together helped make me the artist that I am now I wouldn't be here without you. I have to thank my mom and dad for supporting me in my dreams and giving me a chance to find my own way. I know that it's not easy and I make it harder than it should be sometimes, but I owe them everything. And I need to thank my amazing writing partner, JC he brings things out in me that I didn't know were there." Maddie went first.

"I want to thank the fans. My ma and pop you have been the best parents a guy could ask for. Rayna, Deacon, thank you both so much for takin' a chance on me. I only hope that I've made you proud. And to my partner and one of my best friends you stir emotions in me that I thought I'd buried forever. And to my Cricket you make me want to be better than I am because that's the man you deserve." JC made his speech.

They walked off the stage holding hands.

"JC, that was risky." Maddie whispered to him.

"What's the use in lovin' ya if I can't tell the whole world 'bout it. I look at Will and Mack and see how they have to live. We have a choice they don't right now. Let's do it, Maddie, let's blow their minds." JC told her.

"I'm in if you are." Maddie agreed it was time for them to stop hiding.

* * *

The next category to be awarded was Album of the year. Surprising absolutely no one at all Deacon won.

"About A Girl has been called an open love letter to my wife and I couldn't have described it any more perfectly. To my muse, my music, my lyrics, and my harmony, I love you so much and I meant every word I sang on this album."

"And the winner for best new artist is JC Grayson." Jason Aldean presented that award.

Without any hesitation JC pulled Maddie to her feet and kissed her before he made his way to the stage. He couldn't think of a better way or a better moment to tell the world that they were together. "Wow this award it means so much to me. It wouldn't have been possible without havin' my label behind me a hundred and ten percent." He had to pause because he was overcome with emotion. "This one's for you, Vince. You never got the chance to reach your full potential, but you passed your talent on to me and I'm doin' it for us both. Momma, daddy, thank you both for always supportin' me and just bein' there. Cricket, I couldn't do all this without you. You make me a better artist and a better man."

"Well, he did that on a grand scale." Rayna commented.

"That he did. You know as well as I do that love makes you do crazy things." Deacon shook his head.

Scarlett and Gunnar won for Vocal Group of the Year.

"First I want to thank my incredible husband for pushin' me to do this to begin with. I wouldn't be up on this stage right now if it weren't for him. I wouldn't want to do this with anyone, but him. I have to thank Rayna for takin' not one, but two chances on me and I'm glad I finally got it right. To my momma who gave up her dream to raise me this is more hers than it is mine. To my mawmaw who has always loved and taken care of me. And my amazin' Uncle Deacon who has always loved me as his daughter and not as his niece." Scarlett made her speech.

"Without Scarlett's incredible abilities as songwriter we wouldn't be here. Everything started because of her. I would have gotten here on my own one day, but I can't imagine looking over and not seeing her there by my side. Thanks to the fans and to the label for all your support." Gunnar kept his speech short.

The next category to be announced was Female Vocalist of the Year.

Kenny Chesney was the presenter. "The nominees for Female Vocalist of the Year are Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, Juliette Barnes, and Rayna Jaymes." He opened up the envelope.

Deacon squeezed Rayna's hand.

Avery leaned over and whispered in Juliette's ear. "You're perfect no matter what."

"And the winner is Rayna Jaymes." Kenny read off.

Rayna kissed Deacon before making her way to stage. "I've gotta dedicate this one to my girls and that includes the ones that I didn't give birth to. This is proof that women really can have it all and don't ever let anyone try to tell you any different. You are greater than any one part of yourself it's the sum of all those parts that make you who you are. It's about finding balance and a really understanding partner to weather that storm with you."

Rayna presented for Male Vocalist of the Year. "The nominees are Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean, Luke Wheeler, and Deacon Claybourne." She opened up the envelope.

Luke was already at the edge of his chair he was so sure that he had this one in the bag.

"And the winner is Deacon Claybourne." Rayna was barely able to contain her pride.

Luke's face fell and he sank back in his seat.

Deacon looked completely shocked. He got to his feet and walked up to the stage. He kissed Rayna before he accepted his statue. He stepped up to the podium he had to clear his throat and wipe the tears from his eyes before he could even think about speaking. "I'm so grateful for this award. I never in a million years expected this one. This one,"

He stopped when his emotions got the better of him again. "This one is for my wife, my partner, and my best friend. Baby, I love you so much for everythin' that you've ever been to be or done for me. Meetin' you is the best thing to ever happen to me. Every good thing in my life is attached to you. You helped me build a career, you made me a husband, and you made me a daddy. The only way I can describe you is as a steel magnolia. Somethin' forged in the fire that still managed to maintain its beauty. You are the woman I want our daughters to aspire to be and the type of woman I want our sons to fall in love with. This award belongs as much to you as it does to me."

He'd apparently been saving that speech up all night. It was raw and beautiful emotion dripping from every word.

"I love you so much and I'm so proud of you." Rayna put both her hands on his cheeks and kissed him when they walked off the stage.

"I love you too and you shoulda heard those words from me long before now." Deacon replied.

"You said 'em now and that's all that matters. You're the man I want our sons to be and the type of man I want our daughters to find their happy ending with." She parroted his words.

"I don't know 'bout all that, but I'll take it." He smiled.

"We better get to our seats. After this next performer gets done they will do the lifetime achievement award and then entertainer of the year." She took his hand and led him to their seats.

"Give me just a second and I'll be right there. I've gotta hit the bathroom first." He lied easily.

"Ok, I'll see you back out there." She stole a kiss from him.

Deacon made his way back to the dressing room where Maddie and Daphne were getting ready. "You two are lookin' good."

"Thanks, dad." Daphne grinned at him.

"I'm ready to get this over with. I'm more than a little nervous." Maddie admitted.

"You have nothin' to be nervous 'bout. I'm so proud of you, baby girl. I'm proud of both of you and I know that you're gonna do great. Momma is gonna be so happy to get this award from you. Don't be surprised if she cries a little." He replied.

"We are pretty proud of you too. You just swept every category you were nominated in." Maddie smiled at him.

"We are really happy for you. You deserve this." Daphne chimed in.

"I better get back out there. If you get too nervous look at me I will be right there in the front row, but ya'll ain't gonna need me you'll do fine." He gave them both a hug before he left them to prepare.

* * *

"Where are the girls?" Rayna whispered to Deacon when he reclaimed his seat.

"They probably just went to the bathroom. They are fine you don't need to worry 'bout them." Deacon reassured her.

"I'm sure you're right. I just can't help worrying about them." She replied as the lights dimmed again.

Maddie and Daphne walked out on stage.

"Country music has always been a genre dominated by men, but every once in awhile a woman comes along that makes you question that. Pasty Cline, Kitty Wells, Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn." Maddie started.

"Martina McBride, Reba, Shania Twain, Pam Tillis, and Tanya Tucker just to name a few. These women have taken country music and turned it on its ear. They made the fan base really stop and take notice." Daphne picked up.

"What in the world are these girls up to?" Rayna whispered.

"You'll see." Deacon grinned.

"It's highly doubtful that any of these women have done this as well as the woman we are honoring tonight. She's a second generation country musician and world renowned superstar." Maddie continued. She and Daphne had really worked hard on this speech.

"She's managed to have an even more stellar career than her mother Virginia Wyatt. To the world she's the undisputed Queen of country music, to us she's just mom." Daphne spoke again.

"My sister and I are honored to present the CMA lifetime achievement award to our mother Rayna Jaymes." Maddie finished.

Pictures of Rayna through very stages of her career were put up on the video monitors.

Rayna gasped and put her hand over her mouth. She looked at her husband with tears in her eyes. "You knew,"

"I did." Deacon confirmed.

"Mom, come on up and join us." Daphne encouraged her.

Rayna stood and walked up to the stage. She hugged her daughters. "Wow, I don't even know what to say. And to have this award presented to me by my girls, I'm just blown away. I've known what I wanted to do since I was just about their age. I fought tooth and nail to get to where I am today, but seeing this two beautiful young women standing here before me I know that being their momma has been my greatest accomplishment. They earned this award just as much as I did they sacrificed having me there every day so I could do what I loved. I also have to give credit to my momma she was the first person that saw in me the talent just waiting to get out. I didn't get this far on my own. Watty White gave me my first shot in this business and I will always be grateful to him for that."

She wiped away her tears. "My band makes this all possible and they put up with a lot from me. Trust me when I say I'm not always the easiest person to work with. Throughout my over twenty-year career though there has been one constant for me. If you look at all these pictures just off to the side in all of them you'll see my brilliant lead guitarist, bandleader, and husband. I wouldn't have made it through one day in this business without him. There would be no Rayna Jaymes without Deacon Claybourne and I wouldn't have it any other way."

Deacon got to his feet and clapped his hands. Soon the entire auditorium rose in a standing ovation.

"Were you surprised, mom?" Daphne asked once they were off the stage.

"Darlin', I couldn't have been more surprised if you tried. It was one of the best surprises of my life." Rayna kissed her head.

"I hope you liked the speech we worked really hard on it." Maddie leaned against her side.

"I loved it. I thought that you did very well. I was so proud of you both. My girls are growing up on me. Those tears on my face they were a mix of pride and joy and it was for you two." Rayna kissed her head too. She was surprised when she let her.

* * *

"It's time for the last award of the night and then you don't have to hear us go on and on until next year." Brad said.

"Something I'm sure they're as thankful for as I am." Carrie joked.

"Here tonight to present the Entertainer of the year award is Juliette Barnes." Brad announced Juliette.

Juliette walked out on stage. "I know ya'll are probably as shocked that they asked me to do this as I am. No one ever knows what's gonna come out of my mouth myself included." She waited for the laughter to die down before she went on. "The nominees for Entertainer of the Year are Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Luke Wheeler, and Rayna Jaymes."

"Good luck, Rayna." Luke leaned over and whispered.

"You too, Luke." Rayna whispered back.

Juliette opened the envelope and smiled. "A perfect two for two Rayna Jaymes." She hugged the older woman when she stepped up on stage.

"I think ya'll are probably getting pretty tired of hearing from me. I'm humbled and honored to receive this award two years in a row. My level of success wouldn't be possible without my amazing husband. Whether it's the extra half hour he gives me every morning to sleep in or take care of what I need to while he takes care of the kids or the unwavering loyalty he's shown me since we got our start. Last year I had to be cryptic when I accepted this award, but this year I get to say it loud and proud. To my man, my love Deacon Claybourne, I share this with you, babe. My success is your success and vice versa. I can't think of any other man I rather have be my partner in music or in life. I love you so much and that's never not been true." Rayna blew him a kiss before she exited the stage.

"Alright everyone line up against the backdrop and smile." A photographer instructed.

Rayna, Deacon, Maddie, Will, JC, Scarlett, and Gunnar all lined up holding their awards. They all wore huge smiles on their faces.

"Ray, I realized somethin' just now." Deacon said.

"What's that, babe?" Rayna asked him.

"Highway Sixty-five just swept the CMAs. I think it's safe to say that no one is ever gonna refer to us as a vanity label ever again." Deacon observed.

"Texas forever." Will and JC whooped in approval of that news.

"Texas forever." Rayna gave in and embraced their insanity.

"Texas forever." Deacon chimed in.

"Alright, Miss Maddie, Daphne, you two are headed back to the house. We have to make an appearance at the Mile Marker." Rayna told the girls.

"Can JC maybe come over?" Maddie grinned.

"I suppose if he wants to, but if he comes over the nanny stays." Rayna gave her a knowing look.

"With Daphne there we don't need the nanny trust me on that one." Maddie assured her.

"The nanny isn't there to watch you. The nanny is there for the boys. I would imagine that you have some celebrating that you would like to do whatever that means for you. Just remember that he isn't allowed upstairs as long as daddy and I aren't there." Rayna pointed out to her.

"I know the rules, mom. You have nothing to worry about." Maddie replied. "JC, wanna come over?"

"I couldn't think of anythin' more I rather do tonight. I think that we should even take the limo through the drive thru and pick up some ice cream on the way." JC put one arm around her and another around Daphne.

"Before ya'll go anywhere come give your daddy a hug. I'd hug ya'll, but I've got my arms full with these statues." Deacon told them.

Both girls threw their arms around him. "Love you," they said in unison.

"I love you too. Ya'll better be in bed when I get home or the big bad wolf is gonna come out to play." He teased. He got the expected sigh from Maddie and the giggle from Daphne.

* * *

Rhett and Sadie stood in the back hallway of the Mile Marker kissing. They had both been drinking quite a bit all night and it didn't help that they had polished off a bottle of champagne in the limo on the way over.

"Mmm, Sadie, we gotta stop. We are gonna get caught." Rhett protested halfheartedly.

"I know," Sadie agreed, but she kissed him again anyway.

"Ok, that's enough. We are the first ones here and everyone else could come through the front door at any minute. This will be continued later." He pulled away from her and fixed his tie.

They walked out front and saw that they had a pretty packed house. They had held a CMA viewing party.

"Rhett, I'm gonna warn you that there are cameras in that back hallway and you have lipstick all over your face." June took a napkin and wiped the lipstick off of his cheek.

"Miss June, if you could not tell anyone else 'bout that it would be great." Rhett pleaded with her.

"I think that you're a grown man and whatever you do or don't do with Sadie is your business. I'll just tell you to be careful, because she's been hurt the same way that your father hurt me." June advised him. She'd become like a second mother to him since his passed away.

"I promise you that I won't do anythin' with her that I shouldn't." Rhett swore.

"There he is there's my, baby brother." Beverly squealed when Deacon walked in the front door.

"Bev, must you make me deaf every time you see me?" Deacon hugged her.

"I can't help it I'm just so proud of you." Beverly replied.

June hugged him once Beverly had let go. "Deacon John, I have no words for how proud you've made your momma."

"Thanks, momma." Deacon smiled at her.

Rhett jumped up on the stage and grabbed a mic. "Ya'll can I get your attention for a minute?" He waited until all eyes were on him before he spoke again. "Let's give it up for the artists of Highway Sixty-five and the feat that they pulled off tonight a complete sweep of the CMAs. They were kind enough to show up here tonight. So put your hands together for Rayna Jaymes, Deacon Claybourne, Juliette Barnes, Sadie Stone, Will Lexington, Gunnar Scott, Scarlett O'Connor, Avery Barkley, and JC Grayson." He announced and the whole bar erupted in applause.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter, I hope you guys enjoyed it. I used the CMAs to set up for a bigger storyline that's coming up and I promise that you're going to love it. It's going to feature Juliette and bring her more to the forefront of this story. I hope that I did justice to Rayna's surprise after how much you were all looking forward to it. Until next time please review.


	79. Chapter 79

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 79

"He's over here, Rayna. He's having some kind of freak out and I think you're the only one who is going to be able to get through to him." Jeff pointed to where Marcus stood.

"Jeff, it was your job to handle him. What happened this time? We are in the home stretch here." Rayna asked him.

"Don't ask me I don't understand what makes him tick. He saw the roadies setting up for this concert and he lost his shit. For lack of a better term. I didn't know what else to do with him, so I called you." He shrugged his shoulders.

"I'll handle it." She rolled her eyes and walked over to Marcus. "What's going on?"

"I can't do this. This isn't who I am. I'm going to go out there and open my mouth and they are going to know that I'm a fraud. I'm going to be rejected as a country artist. They will never accept me." Marcus ranted as he paced back and forth.

"Marcus, we've had this talk numerous times already. You can do this. You are not a fraud. You're the real deal. It's time for you to stop being scared and just take a leap." She gave him a pep talk.

"You really think so?" He asked.

"If I didn't think so I wouldn't have taken a chance on you. Look at that, Marcus, just go on and look." She pointed towards the crowd that was already forming. "They are all here to see you. Not because anyone made them show up, but because they wanna see you."

"Wow, that's a lot of people." His mouth hung open. He hadn't expected this big of a showing.

"That's right and it's all for you. You ready to do this now?" She asked him.

He fixed a smile on his face. "As ready as I'm ever gonna be."

Marcus' interview and concert were a huge success. Afterwards he and Rayna walked up onto the rooftop of a building swinging out of a champagne bottle.

"That was amazing. I can't believe it went that well." Marcus took another gulp from the bottle and passed it to Rayna.

Rayna took a huge drink and sat it on the ledge. "This night has been incredible." She laughed. She had really pulled something off by turning him into a country artist. There for a minute she had doubted her ability to do it.

Bolstered by the adrenaline and the booze he took her face in her hands and planted a kiss on her lips.

She put both her hands on his chest and pushed him away. "What the hell was that, Marcus?"

"I thought we were having a moment." He defended himself.

She flashed her wedding ring at him. "I'm a happily married woman. My husband is the only man I want havin' his lips on me. Deacon is my guy always has been always will be."

"You can't deny that there is a spark between us. You are one incredibly good looking woman." He argued.

"I promise you that there is no spark there. You're only attracted to the idea of me. The primped up artist side that you see. This isn't me at all. As a matter of fact, right now I should be home checking homework and tucking two little boys into bed. You can't handle the real me, Marcus. There's only one man I've ever met that I can be myself with and I'm married to him. You need to get your head on right and stop this crazy talk." With that she left him standing alone on the rooftop.

* * *

When she got home both the girls were already in bed and Deacon was in the shower. That suited her just fine. The longer she could put off this conversation with him the better. She walked into the nursery to check on the boys. They were both sound asleep a Johnny Cash record playing in the background. That was Deacon's newest idea. After he and Rayna sang to them he'd put on a classic country album for them as background noise.

She bent over and kissed Little Deacon's head. She crossed the room and she ran her fingers through Jaymes' dark brown hair. Her heart swelled with love as she watched their chests rise and fall peacefully. They looked so much like the man she loved and that made her love them even more than she already did.

"Thank God you're both light sleepers. I have a feelin' that daddy is gonna get really loud here in a little bit. Momma is sorry 'bout that. It seems that I manage to mess things up even when I'm not tryin' to. I love you two little boys so much. You sleep well and I will see you in the morning." She whispered to them before she headed back to her bedroom.

"Hey, there you are. I didn't hear you come in." Deacon was bare chested. He was toweling his hair dry. He went over to his dresser and pulled a t-shirt off.

Rayna sat down on the edge of the bed and started to take her shoes off. "You were in the shower and I wanted to make sure that the boys were both down."

"They went down without a problem. I didn't even make it to the chorus and they were out. You ok? You seem a little off." He pulled his shirt over his head.

She sighed. She had never really been able to hide how she was feeling from him. She got up and went over to him. She put both her hands on his shoulders. "Babe, before I tell you this I need you to know that I love you more than anything in this world and I would never do anything to purposefully hurt you."

"Ok, you're scarin' me a little bit, Ray. This doesn't sound like a fun conversation." His face fell.

"After the concert tonight Marcus kissed me. I shut him down right away and I told him that you're my guy. I don't want anyone else, but you." She bit the bullet and just told him.

His face turned an angry shade of red. "That's it I'm going over there and I'm gonna kill that little son of a bitch. I knew that his interest in you was more than just professional. All those late nights working together, all those texts, and all those phone calls. A man doesn't try to contact a woman that much unless he has a thing for her."

"Come on, babe, that's not true and you know it." She rubbed his shoulders.

"It is true. I ain't sayin' that a man and woman can't do business together without it just bein' business. What I'm sayin' is it's always been pretty damn obvious that he has a thing for you. You're so damn hung up on me that you don't notice it when other guys want you. Look at Luke. He wanted you for years and he almost got you. I don't mind one damn bit that I'm the only guy that you have eyes for. I trust you it's those other guys that I don't trust." His nostrils flared.

"Deacon, please calm down." She begged him.

He pulled out of her grip. "No I won't calm down, damn it. Another man had his lips on my wife and I'm just supposed to be ok with it. I can't do that, Ray, I'm sorry."

She went to reply and groaned when her phone rang. She groaned again when she saw that it was Marcus calling. "Hold that thought just a minute, babe." She picked up the call. "Hey, what's up?" She listened to what Marcus had to say. "No, no, don't do anything. Don't go anywhere. Just talk to me first I'm on my way over there right now." She hung her phone up.

"Where you goin' now? How long do you want me to keep the home fires burnin' this time?" He crossed his arms over his chest.

"Marcus is talking about moving back to LA and getting his band back together. I need to go over there and talk to him." She ignored the tone he had taken with her.

"You're kiddin' me right? You're gonna talk about Marcus in the middle of a fight 'bout Marcus. That is really unbelievable. Let him go, Ray. He's been more trouble than he's worth since the minute he set foot in this town." He threw his hands up in the air.

"I can't do that and you know why I can't. The label just can't take that kind of loss right now." She reasoned with him.

He shook his head and grabbed a pillow off of the bed.

"Deacon, where are you goin'?" She asked.

"I'm goin' downstairs to watch tv. I just can't lay beside you right now. This ain't 'bout the kiss. I know that you didn't kiss him back you didn't have to tell me that. This is 'bout you puttin' what that little crybaby needs before everyone else yourself included. He ain't the only artist on your label you know? He's just the only one you make this big of a deal 'bout." He headed down to the living room.

She put her head in her hands and groaned. She gave up on the idea of going to see Marcus. If she went to talk to him that was only going to make things worse with Deacon. She couldn't help thinking that maybe he had a point. She did spend an awful lot of time catering to Marcus and she didn't do that for her other artists to that extent. Once she had changed clothes she sat down at her vanity and removed her makeup. When she was finished there she crawled into bed and laid on her side staring at the empty spot next to her.

She was still awake when he finally came to bed about an hour later. He threw his pillow down on the bed and laid down facing away from her. She put her hand on his shoulder. "Babe, I'm really sorry."

He didn't reply he just stiffened under her touch.

"If that's how you're gonna be then I'm not even gonna try tonight." She rolled over and faced the wall with her back to his.

* * *

When Rayna went into work the next morning she found Juliette already waiting in her office for her.

"This is not how I want to start my day after the way my night ended. Just tell me what it is you want." Rayna sat in her chair and stuck her purse in her bottom drawer.

"I need a tour or somethin', Rayna. I was nominated for two CMAs and I didn't win either of them. This is just crazy. I can't be washed up already I'm still in my prime." Juliette stressed to the older diva.

"Juliette, we will come up with something for you. You just have to be patient I know that that's not your strong suit. But, I promise you that I have your best interests at heart here. After the whole Charles Wentworth scandal you're lucky you've been nominated at all the past two years. We have to rebuild some good will for you within the industry." Rayna explained to her.

"I was afraid that you were gonna say somethin' like that. Avery has been tellin' me the same thing. Damn I hate it when he's right." Juliette huffed.

Rayna tapped her fingertips together deep in thought for a moment. "Let me ask you something. Do you think that I've catered to Marcus more than I have any of my other artists?"

"Are you sure I'm the person you want to ask that question? You know how I can be." Juliette made a lame joke, but she saw that the other woman was serious. "I can't say that you haven't done everythin' that you possibly could for me. You took me on when no other label would touch me and you flew halfway across the country for me because I called you cryin'. You've been better to me than I deserve. You've bent over backwards for Sadie and Layla. You've done the same thing for Scarlett, Gunnar, Will, and Avery. You amended his contract so he wouldn't have to go back to Ohio when I was a mess. You've been really great with JC and the girls too. I hate to say it, but Deacon is the artist that's kinda on the back burner. The man just won five CMAs and made the label look really good, but he has to do everythin' for himself."

"How do you mean?" Rayna asked.

"It means you've rushed 'round to find producers and way to promote every other artist on this label except him. He had to act as his own producer 'cause you didn't bother to find one for him. He wrote every song on his album without any help from anyone. And with the exception of the launch party you threw him he's done his own promotion." Juliette explained.

"And I was afraid you were gonna say that. You're not the only one that hates it when your husband is right." Rayna sighed loudly.

"What brought that on?" Juliette asked to be friendly.

"This goes no further than this room. I know I don't have to tell you that. Uh, last night Marcus kissed me and I had to tell Deacon 'bout it. Of course he got pissed and we started fightin' 'cause it's one of the things we do best. While we were fightin' Marcus called sayin' he was gonna drop out of this tour and get his band back together. I offered to go over there and talk it out with him. Well, that didn't sit so well with Deacon. And then he accused me of catering to Marcus more than anyone else." Rayna answered her.

"I'm the wrong person to ask for advice. When I'm in a spot like this honestly I normally go to Deacon and have him lay some of his Man Wisdom on me." Juliette shrugged her shoulders helplessly.

"If I try that right now the only thing I'm gonna get from him is a cold shoulder. We slept facin' away from each other last night and that never happens. If it's nothin' more than our feet bein' tangled up together we are touchin' in some way." Rayna told her.

"I wish I could do more to help you out. Like I said you've been really great to me and you've made me a part of your family." Juliette replied.

Rayna's eyes lit up. "How would you like to have a co-write on my album?"

"What did you have in mind?" Juliette asked.

"Do you have anything else to do today? Because I just thought of a song for my new album, but my normal writing partner is mad at me right now." Rayna responded.

"My whole mornin' and afternoon free. I just need to be out of here in time to be at the Mile Marker later." Juliette told her.

"What's going on at the Mile Marker tonight?" Rayna was at a loss on that one.

"Riff Bell is playin' there tonight as a practice show before he heads out on the road with Luke. This is kinda a big deal even to someone like me." Juliette informed her.

"Yeah, I knew that it just slipped my mind and we won't be tellin' Deacon that. I know that this is a huge deal. I'm surprised with this bein' Luke that Deacon agreed to it." Rayna mused. She grabbed two pads of paper and two pens out of her desk drawer. "Alright, we don't have time to waste. We need to get to writing us a song."

"He ain't gonna hear it from me. What exactly does this do to help my career?" Juliette picked up a pen.

"You know who started out as the go to songwriter and then his drinkin' destroyed his reputation? Deacon and look at where he's at now. This kills two birds with one stone. It helps revamp your image and it gives me another song for my album." Rayna winked at her.

* * *

"Alright, Gunnar, how we soundin'?" Deacon stood up on stage and spoke into a mic.

Gunnar gave him the thumbs up. "I hear you loud and clear." He was helping Deacon make sure that everything was in order before the big show.

"Good lord, Deacon, you're as nervous as a virginal bride on her weddin' night." Frankie Gray was an old friend of Deacon's from AA and he'd needed a job, so he'd agreed to give him a spot at the Mile Marker.

"Frankie, I just hired you last week don't make me fire your ass already." Deacon joked.

"Your momma and your sister ain't gonna let that happen. They like me better than they like you." Frankie threw a towel over his shoulder and laughed. He was really there to replace Rhett as a bartender when he started playing ball.

"I wouldn't go that far, Frankie, but you're not bad to have around." Beverly smiled at him. "Baby Brother, give it a rest. We have a sound guy that can take care of that. You didn't have to bring Gunnar in. You didn't have to get the other boys in here to unload today's shipment. And you sure as hell didn't have to bring Maddie and Daphne in here to inventory things."

"I just wanted to make sure that things went smooth for you and momma tonight. That's all. And 'cause Jimmy has been outta town since the CMAs and I needed to give Maddie somethin' to do. It ain't 'cause my name is Rayna and I'm a type A control freak." Deacon was still just a little pissed off with Rayna.

"I'm not gonna ask. I'm just sayin' you're lucky we're closed. You have you twin sons sittin' on the top of the bar in their bouncy seats right now." Beverly pointed out to him.

"They wanted to come spend some time with daddy and watch him work before they have to stay with the nanny tonight." Deacon waved at the boys. He smiled when they giggled.

"Like I said I'm better off not even askin'." Beverly shook her head and went back to what she'd been doing before.

* * *

" _Last night we went to bed not talkin' 'cause we already said too much. I faced the wall you faced the window bound and determined not to touch. We've been married seven years now some days it feels like twenty-one. I'm still mad at you this mornin' coffee's ready if you want some. I've been up since five thinkin' 'bout me and you. And I've gotta tell you the conclusion I've come to."_

Rayna and Juliette were listening to the rough cut of the song they'd just written and Rayna had recorded.

" _I'll never leave I'll never stray my love for you will never change, but I ain't ready to make up we'll get around to that. I think I'm right I think you're wrong. I'll probably give in before long. Please don't make me smile. I just wanna be mad for a while."_

"You and Deacon oughta fight more often this song is really good if I don't say so myself." Juliette smirked.

"Deacon and I most certainly don't need to fight any more than we already do. I'm too old for us to fight the way we used to fight." Rayna snorted.

" _For now you might as well forget it don't run your fingers through my hair. Yeah that's right I'm bein' stubborn no I don't wanna go back upstairs. I'm gonna leave for work without a goodbye kiss. But as I'm drivin' off just remember this."_

" _I'll never leave I'll never stray my love for you will never change, but I ain't ready to make up we'll get around to that. I think I'm right I think you're wrong. I'll probably give in before long. Please don't make me smile. I just wanna be mad for a while. I'll never leave I'll never stray my love for you will never change, but I ain't ready to make up we'll get around to that. I think I'm right I think you're wrong. I'll probably give in before long. Please don't make me smile. I just wanna be mad for a while."_

"I'm just sayin' that your passion obviously inspires some good stuff." Juliette replied.

"I know that more than one hit song has been written right after a fight." Rayna agreed.

" _I just wanna be mad for a while. I just wanna be mad for a while. I just wanna be mad for a while."_ The song finished.

"Well, for one of your first outings writing someone else's stuff I have to say that you did very well." Rayna smiled at her.

"Thanks, Rayna, comin' from you that means a lot." Juliette blushed a little.

"No, thank you. You've been a really big help today." Rayna told her. She grabbed her phone when it rang. "Marcus," She rolled her eyes.

"Good luck. I need to go home and get ready. I'll see you later." Juliette replied.

"Yeah, I'll see you in a little bit." Rayna agreed.

* * *

Deacon checked his watch every few seconds and he watched the door hoping to see his wife come walking in. She was well known for running behind, but she wouldn't be this late knowing how important tonight was for the Mile Marker. Despite the line that it was June and Beverly's place, it was really his pet project and everyone knew that. It was something that was his and that he'd built for himself.

"Hey, have you heard anythin' from your momma?" He walked over to where Maddie stood with Daphne.

"I haven't heard from her all day, dad." Maddie replied.

"I haven't heard from her either." Daphne shook her head.

"Hmm, that's odd. I'm sure she's just late as usual. We aren't there to light a fire under her, so I guess she's runnin' later than normal." He tried to act like everything was ok.

"She'll be here, dad. She wouldn't miss this for anything. She knows how important this is to you." Maddie reassured him.

"I know that." Deacon fixed a smile on his face as a blonde walked over to them. "Well, hey, Cash."

"Hi, Deacon, it's been a really long time." Cash hugged him.

"It has the last time I saw you, you were a little bitty thing. I heard you just got off the road with Kasey Musgrave. Your daddy has been braggin' on you." He hugged her back.

"Yeah, I did. I'm back in Nashville now and I'm just looking for some gigs." Cash replied.

"There's a spot for you here anytime you want it." He assured her. "Let me introduce you to the gang. These two here are my girls Maddie and Daphne. Then there's Scarlett, Gunnar, Will, Avery, Juliette, Mack, Sadie, and my baby brother Rhett. Ya'll mind your manners and make her feel welcome. I got some business to go take care of." He instructed them. He walked off and left them to their devices.

"From the way he's always tellin' us that you would think that we didn't know how to behave or somethin'." Will laughed.

"That's because you don't know how to behave especially when JC is around. You two are more trouble than you're worth. Rhett should be made a saint for living with you both." Scarlett scoffed.

"This right here is what Deacon was talkin' 'bout. Ya'll get carried away." Sadie shook her head.

"Ignore them all as best you can. I know that I do. So, you were on tour with Kasey Musgrave?" Maddie took an instant liking to Cash.

"I was and it was pretty cool. But look at you. You've toured with some pretty good company." Cash replied.

"Good company until you get to know them or at least until you get to know Will. Him and my boyfriend are the bullies of the group, but in the they are the only ones allowed to bully us and they would take out anyone else who tried it way." Maddie drifted away from them to talk to Cash.

"I'll keep that in mind. I keep up with the CMAs and stuff while I'm out on the road. You're very impressive for someone so young." Cash complimented her.

"Thanks, my parents give me a lot of freedom. I do my own thing and I still write songs with my sister. That part isn't so much fun at times, because we have different life experiences, but it was part of the deal if I wanted to have a little free reign to do my own thing too. Originally my mom was dead set against me having a career before I graduated, so it's something at least." Maddie replied.

"Anytime you feel like writing give me a call I'm always up for it." Cash offered.

"Thanks, I will." Maddie smiled.

"I'm gone a few days and you're already findin' a new writin' partner." JC snuck up behind Maddie and startled her. He was dressed in his utility uniform with his green beret on his head. He'd just gotten in from a training exercise.

"JC, you're back." Maddie threw her arms around his neck and kissed him quickly. She couldn't kiss him the way she wanted to because they were in public.

"Good you did miss me." He grinned.

"Cash, this is my boyfriend, JC." Maddie introduced them.

"Nice to meet ya." He smiled politely.

"Nice to meet you too." Cash smiled back.

* * *

Rayna didn't make it to the show until the first half was over and Riff was taking a break. She walked over to the table that Deacon, Luke, and Riff occupied.

"Freakin' Deacon, don't look now, but I think it's time for us to behave 'cause your bride is here." Luke said in a stage whisper.

"So far we ain't done nothin' to misbehave. We haven't broke out the cards yet. The night is still young though." Deacon laughed. He pecked Rayna's lips quickly just to keep up appearances.

"Rayna, look at you, gorgeous as ever. And still way too good for either of these knuckleheads. Especially the one who likes to wear a cowboy hat a lot." Riff hugged her.

"You're still a flatterer. And it still isn't gonna get you anywhere with me. We are both happily married and you never had a chance anyway. For better or worse the one that wears way too much denim and flannel is my guy for life." She hugged him back.

"Can you at least admit that I'm better looking than Luke?" Riff teased.

"Yeah, I think I can let you have that one if it makes you feel any better." She put her arm around Deacon's waist.

"It is one thing to tell a man that you don't love him it's another thing to tell a man with questionable facial hair that he's better lookin'." Luke pretended to be hurt.

"The only way this gets any worse is if Vince were still alive. The four of you knew how to get in trouble." She laughed and shook her head.

"Well, Vinny and Riff are how we all ended up in Tijuana one night. I was drunk and so was Wheel's Up at the time, so we were innocent and drug along for the ride." Deacon relaxed against her. It was so hard for him to stay mad at her. This really wasn't her fault. Marcus had been the one to cross the line not her. He understood why this meant so much to her and even if he didn't always like the things that Marcus did, if she was determined to keep him on the label he would deal with it, because he knew this label meant everything to her.

"The Tijuana story is never to be told in front of my sons. I thought I was gonna kill all four of you idiots that night. I almost left you border patrol to teach you a lesson." When she thought about it, it really was a miracle that any of them had survived this long. They'd all been heavy drinkers Deacon was just the alcoholic of the bunch. "Speaking of idiots you have one less to worry about Marcus is going back to LA." She whispered lowly so only Deacon could hear it.

Deacon nodded his head and kissed her temple. "I don't wanna tell the boys the Tijuana story. You broke up with me, but shared the same bed with me for a week because of that trip." He slipped his hand into her back pocket and pinched her ass. He grinned when she looked up at him.

"Riff, you and the family have to come for dinner before you leave for this tour. I'll even let you bring the guy with the cowboy hat with ya." Rayna put her hand in Deacon's back pocket and pinched his ass in retaliation.

"Might as well, we are like the halfway house anyway." Deacon agreed. Since the CMAs things had shifted between him and Luke and they were back on their way to being friends again.

"The story I heard was the halfway house is your place in East Nashville." Luke countered. He didn't see the point in holding a grudge against Deacon anymore.

"That's true too as in they are all halfway out the door. Two country artists and a baseball player live there." Deacon laughed and shook his head. It felt good to be able to talk and reminisce like this. Clearly the night had been a huge success because the bar was packed and Marcus was on his way far away. Things couldn't get any better than that.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Yeah I went and brought Cash and Frankie in, but things are gonna go a lot differently with them. That storyline needs to be fixed and I think I'm up for the job. Marcus is finally out of the picture and that's something to be thankful for. I promise you that things are about to get interesting. Until next time please review.


	80. Chapter 80

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 80

"Jimmy, did you get what I asked you to get?" Rayna asked JC cryptically. She sat behind her desk in her office.

"Yeah, I got the package and it's at Deacon's old place. I still can't believe that you pulled this together so quickly." JC leaned against the doorjamb.

"When you've been in this business as long as I have you develop a lot of contacts. Who'd you leave to babysit the package?" She arched her eyebrow.

"Rhett and Will are both home right now. I figure that will be fine for right now. I don't think Deacon has any reason to go by there today." He replied.

"He doesn't. Deacon is actually busy giving some guitar magazine an interview today. That's why the boys are in here with me. That actually works out perfectly because it's a short interview and he will be free for later." She smiled.

"You get shit done that's for sure. If Maddie is anythin' like you I've got my work cut out for me." He chuckled.

"You've got it worse she's got me and Deacon in her. That's not the best combination in the world sometimes." She laughed lightly and then her face got serious. "Are you sure it's ok that invited Amy?"

"Yeah, it's fine that you asked Amy to come. It's not gonna be a problem." He assured her.

"Ok, good. For the last week things have been kinda chilly between Deacon and me. I know it's because of Marcus and I just wanted to do something special for my husband. I can't think of anyone else who deserves this more than he does." She rambled a little bit.

"Things just ain't chilly between you two it's been like a blizzard. I don't know what went down and I don't wanna know, but I can assure you that this will fix it. My daddy always said that if you piss 'em off you gotta do somethin' big to make it right." He shrugged his shoulders.

"Big Jack has about as much Man Wisdom to dispense as Deacon does. Vince was always quoting Big Jack." She laughed at the fond memory.

"I never will understand why they call him Big Jack. As far as I know no one ever called Vince Little Jack." He mused.

"I guess it's just a habit. When I'm talking to June or Beverly I'll call Deacon Big Deacon. I never call Deac Little Deacon or DJ. It's just an easy way to distinguish between the two of them." She explained.

"Do you want me to grab Max and Hailey and have them help set up at the Mile Marker?" He asked.

"I want you to have Max meet up with the rest of the band at Sound Check. I got most of my original band back together for this. The only exception is Vince. I'm using my regular drummer for that. He's been with us since Vince died. Hailey you can let her do whatever she wants to do. Just make sure that no one says anythin' to Deacon." She answered.

"I've got it covered. No worries." He gave her a thumbs up and headed out the door.

* * *

A few hours later after she'd finished up all her work for the day Rayna headed into Deacon's office to see if he was ready to head out.

"Hey, Ray," Deacon looked up from what he was doing with a small smile on his face.

"So, I was thinking if you're done for the day we could head over to the Mile Marker and grab some dinner. I already found a sitter for the boys and everything." Rayna suggested to him.

"I think that I'm mighty damn agreeable to that. I'm starvin' and I seem to recall that we have damn good food there." He replied.

"Let's get goin' then. I figured that the two of us could use the time together." She held her hand out to him and did her best to hide a smile. He had no clue what she had planned for him and that was just the way she wanted it.

He took her hand and let her lead him out to his truck.

Rayna sent Rhett a look when she and Deacon walked into the Mile Marker.

"It's pretty packed in here, babe." Deacon commented.

"Yeah, it is. It looks like that Riff Bell show really put you on the map." Rayna smiled and led him to a table. "Babe, I'm gonna go freshen up a bit. I will be right back." She pecked his lips.

"Take your time, baby." He pulled her to him and kissed her again before he let her go.

Rhett took the hint and got up on the stage. "Here at the Mile Marker we refer to this stage as the Highway. The journey that each artist takes in hopes of one day hitting the right exit ramp. Sometimes that big break doesn't come without makin' a lot of wrong turns and takin' a few bad exits. And for some it never comes at all. But there are a few who stay the course and get there just a little bit later than everyone they started out with. They show that they really put that extra time it took them to get there to good use. The artist I'm about to introduce knows nothin' 'bout that part, but she does know 'bout the journey. Ladies and Gentlemen, put your hands together for Ms. Rayna Jaymes."

Rayna walked onto the stage holding a mic. She hugged Rhett and whispered in his ear. "You did good, kiddo." She waited for him to step down before she addressed the crowd. "Thank ya'll so much for the warm welcome. Rhett said it best when he said that making it in this business is a journey full of wrong turns and bad exits. It's what you make of those wrong turns and detours that define you. No one I know has done that better than man whose career we are here to celebrate tonight. Kid Rock, Blake Shelton, Brantley Gilbert, Miranda Lambert, Juliette Barnes, Sadie Stone, and Will Lexington are all examples of people who have benefitted from this artist. I say we just let him speak for himself. Rhett, roll it." An image appeared on the video screen behind her and she stepped off to the side.

Deacon sat at the table with a confused look on his face.

"Hey, Deacon John." June sat down and put her hand on her son's shoulder.

"Hi, momma. I don't know what this woman is up to. I just know she can't go five seconds without workin'." He shook his head.

"You need to pay attention to this." She advised him.

He refocused his attention on the stage. A picture of a baby appeared on the video monitor. "That looks like Deac or Jayme." He commented.

"It should." She replied.

The next picture that came up was of a dark headed little boy sitting on a man's lap playing the guitar.

"That's me," He looked even more confused than he had before.

"That's right, baby boy, they are talkin' 'bout you." She smiled at him.

The next picture that came up was of Deacon dressed in a baseball uniform followed by a picture of him where he was probably around ten playing the guitar. His picture from junior high graduation came next. Then pictures of him in his high school football uniform and his high school baseball uniform came. There was a picture of him in his cap and gown from his graduation. After that there was a picture of him onstage at the Bluebird. There were pictures of him and Vince and him and Rayna. There were numerous pictures from his time in Rayna's band. The pictures captured different stages in his career until a picture from him at his Opry induction popped up followed by a picture of him from out on a tour that summer. The slideshow ended with pictures from the CMA's.

"Deacon Claybourne has without a doubt had one of the most storied careers in the history of country music. It's been my pleasure to be there by his side for most of the ride. Tonight we are here to celebrate that career and the man that has touched the lives of so many. He's certainly made my life better. We have quite a few surprises in store tonight. I don't think anyone is gonna be more surprised than Deacon." Rayna picked up again.

Deacon was blushing. He really wasn't used to this kind of attention being paid to him.

"I'm gonna start us out tonight with a song my husband wrote for me. It came from a place of sincerity and love. Obviously I can't play guitar, so I have a little help." Rayna gestured with her hand and the curtain opened to reveal her band. They had all worked with Deacon for years. Vince's brother-in-law Max had even come back for the night. For this song JC stood in as bandleader since he had played it countless times.

Rayna sang I Know How to Love You Now. She'd changed the words around to fit her. She was just as guilty of doing things to break his heart as he was doing things to break hers. By the time she finished she had to wipe away a tear.

Deacon wiped away a tear as well and he stuffed his feelings back down. He tried not to be overly emotional if he could help it.

"Deacon, come on up here. I've got something for you." Rayna called him up to the stage.

Deacon walked up there his cheeks bright red. "Oh, woman, why'd you do this?" He spoke through his teeth.

Rayna ignored him and instead she went to grab something off stage. It was a framed platinum record next to it was the album cover of About A Girl. "There are few things in life that I count on, but one of those things is the fact that Deacon never checks his emails or looks himself up on the internet." She joked.

"What's this?" Deacon asked.

"This is your first platinum album." Rayna handed him the frame.

"Wow, I have no clue what to say. I'm just absolutely blown away." Deacon grinned ear to ear.

"You don't have to say anythin', darlin'. I think that platinum record says it all." Rayna laughed softly. "Now, where do you think you're goin'?" She asked when he looked like he was going to get off the stage.

"Well, you said I didn't have to say anythin' so I was gonna go sit down." Deacon explained.

"Not so fast. Did you honestly think I was gonna let you off the hook that easily?" Rayna teased him. "There's something else that I have for you, but it's not quite from me."

Hailey walked out on the stage at that moment holding a plaque. "Freakin' Deacon, I don't know how you have a properly functionin' bar without my brother. So, to be safe we got you this plaque to go over the bar. The Vince Grayson Memorial Bar. That way he's always watchin' over things. Though if your booze starts to disappear you know why." Even though she was smiling a tear rolled down her cheek.

Deacon blinked his eyes to clear the tears from his vision. "Hailey, I'd be honored to have Vinny watch over my bar. I can't think of a better person for the job." He hugged her.

"Now, you can step down." Rayna told him.

* * *

All the Highway Sixty-five artists went through Deacon's song catalog and played them in tribute to him.

"Well, Deac, it looks like you've finally hit the big time." Amy approached him.

"Amy, what are you doin' here?" Deacon smiled. It really was good to see her. Back when Vince was still alive they had all been good friends.

"It's not every day that one of my best friends has his album go platinum. Rayna invited me and I couldn't turn her down." Amy hugged him.

"It's real good to see ya." Deacon hugged her back.

"Look at her walkin' in here like she didn't just drop me off like yesterday's garbage." JC grumbled to his sister.

"Jimmy, it's time that you knew the truth. You're old enough to hear this now and draw your own conclusions. Amy didn't dump you off on momma and daddy cause she wanted to. She did it cause she had to and she wanted you to have a better life. She was on drugs and she was supposed to come back for you, but she didn't. She saw that you were happy and you had what she couldn't give you, so she let you stay. I don't want you to think that you weren't wanted though. There is a reason I've never let her be bad mouthed in front of you. She loved you enough to give you a good life without her. Now it's your turn to respect that enough to give her the time of day." Hailey lectured him.

"I'm so glad that you're in Dallas and I don't have to deal with you and Rayna double teamin' me. She rides my ass 'bout as bad as you ever dared to." JC shook his head.

"Good someone needs to stay on your ass and make you that you continue to be a functionin' member of society." Hailey arched her eyebrow at him.

"She's kinda like your mother-in-law, babe, she's supposed to be on you." Maddie pointed out to him.

"I still can't believe that Vince's son and Freakin' Deacon's daughter are datin'. We always said that if it weren't for Rayna and if Vinny were a woman those two woulda been together." Max laughed.

"And to think you used to be my favorite brother-in-law." JC rolled his eyes. His posture stiffened slightly when Amy walked over.

"Hey, Amy, it's good to see you." Hailey greeted her warmly and shot a warning look at her little brother.

"It's good to see you too, Hailey. How are Dixie and Big Jack?" Amy asked to be polite.

"They are Dixie and Big Jack. Can't please one and can't get the other to stop bein' a control freak." Max supplied.

"Mad Max, I can't believe Hailey hasn't killed you yet." Amy laughed.

"We have kids she can't kill me she'd have to explain what momma did to daddy." Max smirked.

"Hi, Jimbo," Amy gave JC a small smile.

"Hey," JC cleared his throat and took Maddie's hand. "Amy, this is my girlfriend Maddie. Maddie, this is Amy my biological mother."

"I would have to be living under a rock not to know who you're dating. I think the CMA's made that clear." Amy teased him. "Maddie, it's very nice to meet you. You two being together is just about the most perfect thing ever."

"It's nice to meet you too." Maddie replied.

* * *

Another video was cued up on the video screen. Brantley Gilbert appeared wearing his signature ball cap. "Freakin' Deacon, congratulations on your first platinum album. I can't think of anyone who deserves it more than you do. I'll see ya on down the road, brother."

"I can't believe that you got Brantley to go this." Deacon looked at Rayna.

"Darlin', I just made some calls. You're the one who did this. All I had to do was say your name and everyone I talked to was in. That's how much you mean to the people in this industry. I can't even begin to put into words how much you mean to me." Rayna took his hand and kissed it.

"Thank you for goin' out of your way to make a big deal outta this for me, Ray. I can't begin to tell ya how much that means to me." Deacon smiled at her.

"I know how much it means to you, babe. I should have made a big deal out of you sooner. I'm sorry that I didn't. I have the bad habit of taking you for granted. And I don't even realize that I'm doing it until you lose it and just let loose on me. It shouldn't have to get to that point." Rayna rubbed his back lovingly.

"Ray, if this is still 'bout the Marcus thing I'm sorry. I was a big baby 'bout that whole situation. I knew what it meant to you, but I couldn't just be supportive. I guess I got a little jealous. Honestly, I got a lot jealous. You were spendin' all your time on this guy and you didn't put that much effort into it when it came to me. I've never needed any of the extra attention I guess I just needed to know that I wasn't just bein' your beck and call boy." Deacon admitted.

"Honey, you've always been way more than my beck and call boy. I may haven't always shown it the way I should, but you've always been the drivin' force behind me. You weren't my side show you were the man behind the woman. That was true even when we weren't together. You've always been more supportive of me than anyone." She leaned against his side.

"I love you, babe. And I know you love me that's the only thing that really matters." He smiled at her.

"I thought that you could use a grand romantic gesture though. It never hurts to show you how much I love you." She kissed his cheek.

"You're gonna mess your lips up kissin' on me." He teased her.

"I think it's worth it." She kissed his cheek again.

"Just my cheek ain't worth it. Come here." He tilted her head towards him and kissed her lips. "That's much better." He grinned.

"That's definitely worth messing my lips up over." She kissed him again.

"Freakin' Deacon, quit makin' out with your woman and join us up here on stage." Luke was up on the stage with Riff.

"You two ain't changed in almost thirty years. We still need to have the hose to cool you off." Riff added.

"I better go, darlin'. My duty calls." Deacon laughed.

"Go on, go up there and show them up. You're the better guitar player and they both know it." Rayna fed his ego a little bit. It wasn't a lie though. He was a better guitar player than Luke and Riff combined.

Deacon walked up on stage and grabbed his guitar. "What are we playin', boys?"

"Let's go with that one from your Outlaws at Highway Sixty-five. Small Town Throw Down." Luke answered him.

"I think we can handle that just fine. Or at least I know I can I wrote it." Deacon tuned his guitar up.

"Rayna, you've created a monster. He used to not have an ego this big. Now between his ego and Luke's ego it's a miracle there's enough room for me on this stage." Riff joked.

Rayna just shrugged her shoulders and laughed. She liked seeing him show a little confidence.

"We gonna talk or are we gonna play?" Luke asked.

"We're playin'." Deacon started to play the song.

* * *

" _If you've got somethin' else to say it let's get out before the end of the day. Cause it's been too long singin' the same song when we're losin' time."_ Deacon was now up on stage with June, Beverly, Scarlett, Maddie and Daphne. He and Maddie both strummed guitars. This was the song that June had made him and Beverly sing over and over again when they were young.

" _Trouble may come a knockin', but you will be a friend of mine. A friend of mine. Leavin' what we knew behind you will always be a friend of mine. A friend of mine."_ They all sang the chorus with him.

" _So many battles we have lost. So many bridges we had to cross. But it's been too long singin' the same song, oh, but we've got time."_ June showed off her impressive vocals. It wasn't hard to tell where Deacon or Beverly had gotten their ability to sing from.

" _We've got time."_ Everyone else harmonized.

" _Trouble may come a knockin', but you will be a friend of mine. A friend of mine. Leavin' what we knew behind you will always be a friend of mine. A friend of mine."_

" _All we have is our best."_ Deacon took over again.

" _All we have."_ The women harmonized again.

" _We can't give any more or less. Trustin' God with the rest. We can open any door."_ Beverly sang.

" _Trouble may come a knockin', but you will be a friend of mine. A friend of mine. Leavin' what we knew behind you will always be a friend of mine. A friend of mine."_

" _La, la, la, la, la, la. La, la, la, la, la, la. La, la, la, la, la, la."_

" _You will always be a friend of mine."_ Deacon sang.

" _You will always be a friend."_ Maddie, Daphne, and Scarlett took that harmony.

" _You will always be a friend of mine."_ They finished in unison.

"That was pretty damn special. That was one of the first songs that my momma taught us when we were kids." Deacon wrapped his arm around June and kissed her cheek. "Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for my momma, June Claybourne."

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

" _Counted the stars on the fourth of July wishin' we were rockets burstin' into the sky. Talkin' 'bout redemption and leavin' things behind as the sun sank west of the Mendocino County line."_ Deacon launched into a new song off of their duet album that was due out any day.

" _As fierce as Monday mornin' feelin' washed away. Our orchestrated paradise couldn't make you stay. You dance with the horses through the sands of time. As the sun sinks west of the Mendocino County line."_ Rayna sang.

" _I have these pictures and I keep these photographs to remind me of a time."_ He picked up.

" _These pictures and these photographs let me know I'm doin' fine."_ She took that line.

" _I used to make you happy once upon a time."_ He sang again.

" _But the sun sank west of the Mendocino County line."_ They sang in unison.

" _The two of us together felt nothin', but right. Feelin' near immortal every Friday night."_ Deacon started the next verse.

" _Lost in our convictions lips stained with wine. As the sun sank west of the Mendocino County line."_ Rayna looked over at him as she sang.

" _I have these pictures and I keep these photographs to remind me of a time."_

" _These pictures and these photographs let me know I'm doin' fine."_

" _I used to make you happy once upon a time."_

" _But the sun sank west of the Mendocino County line."_

" _I don't talk to you too much these days. I just thank the lord pictures don't fade. I spent time with an angel just passin' through. Now all that's left is this image of you."_ Rayna belted out.

" _Counted the stars on the fourth of July. Wishin' we were rockets burstin' into the sky. Talkin' 'bout redemption and leavin' things behind."_ Deacon picked up after his guitar solo.

" _I have these pictures and I keep these photographs to remind me of a time."_ Rayna took that line this time.

" _These pictures and these photographs let me know I'm doin' fine."_ Deacon gazed at her lovingly. _"We used to be so happy once upon a time."_

" _Once upon a time."_ She stared back into his eyes.

" _But the sun sank west of the Mendocino County line. And the sun sank west of the Mendocino County Line."_

" _Mendocino County line."_ He sang softly.

" _The Mendocino County line. Mendocino County line."_ She added. She smiled over at Deacon. "Of all the number one hits I've had in my career Deacon has co-written and helped sing most of them. I thought tonight we could do one that he hasn't sang in public yet."

"Ray, what do you have in mind?" He looked at her suspiciously.

"I thought maybe we could hit them with This Time. That is if you're up for it." She sent a teasing smirk his way.

He didn't respond verbally he just traded his acoustic guitar for his electric guitar and started playing. He smirked back at her as if to challenge accepted.

" _Well, you know how it goes when you meet somebody that you like somebody wanna hold somebody. But, you just can't stand to think about somebody as another somebody becoming someone else when it all goes to hell."_ She sang the opening verse of the song.

" _Why can't we keep it on the sweet side? See how it feels to take the slow ride? This time."_ They sang the chorus together.

" _So you try to run away from the one somebody that you like somebody wanna hold somebody. But you can't stay away from the one somebody cause they're ain't nobody else running through your dreams. So we complicate things."_ She sang the next verse.

" _Why can't we keep it on the sweet side? See how it feels to take the slow ride? This time."_

" _You don't need to meet my momma. You don't need a key to my house. We don't need to dream and plan and scheme ain't nothin' here to figure out."_ They moved closer to each other as they sang the bridge together.

" _Wouldn't it be nice just to find somebody that you like somebody wanna hold somebody. And you didn't have to worry 'bout losing somebody cause you pushed somebody a little too hard too fast. Oh, I could use some of that."_ Rayna was hip to hip with Deacon now. She held the mic up to his mouth so they could share it for the next part of the song.

" _I wanna get back on the sweet side. I wanna get back on the slow ride. Want every kiss to give me butterflies. See that oh baby come here look in your eyes. This time, this time."_

Deacon leaned over and stole a quick kiss from her after they had finished singing.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Thank ya'll so much for coming out tonight and helping me celebrate this man's career. It means so much to me and I'm glad that ya'll are starting to see him the way that I always have." Rayna stood on the stage next to Deacon.

"I'm absolutely humbled and blown away by this. Words can't express how grateful I am to all of you for showin' up tonight. This is just further proof that my wife is a force of nature. She knows how to get things done." Deacon teared up a little as he spoke. "Now there's only way that we can close this down tonight that is gonna be appropriate. Momma, Bev, Scarlett, Gunnar, Rhett, Maddie, and Daphne get on up here."

They closed the show out with A Life That's Good. Deacon looked around at everyone standing on the stage with him and he couldn't think of anything else he needed to be happy. He had everything he'd ever wanted and then some.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter I hope you guys enjoyed it. Sorry for the long wait I had a friend of mine's wedding that I was in and that took up all of my time. I'm back now and this story is far from over. I've still got a lot of good stuff in store for you. Until next time please review.


	81. Chapter 81

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 81

Deacon laid out across the bed in nothing but a pair of tight boxer briefs and one of his old flannel shirts unbuttoned and hanging off his shoulders. He'd showered first and dodged Rayna's suggestion that they shower together. It about killed his soul to turn her down, but he wanted to surprise her for a change. She was always surprising him with sex and after the tribute she'd thrown for him tonight he wanted to even the score a little bit.

He rearranged himself so that his chest muscles and abs showed when he heard her hair dryer shut off. He would never understand why it took her so long to get ready for bed. She was gorgeous without all the lotions and creams that she wasted time applying every night. He rubbed his hand over the growing bulge in front of his underwear when he heard her come closer to the bathroom door.

Rayna finally emerged from the bathroom with her hair looking perfect as always. Tonight she had chosen a silk nightgown over her usual bedtime attire of a t-shirt and sleep pants. Her eyes were drawn to her husband right away. "So this is why you turned down shower sex?" She bit her lip. She felt a fire ignite in the pit of her stomach. This man still had the ability to turn her on with just one look.

"I may be guilty as charged there, Ray." He smirked up at her. He ran his hand up and down his chiseled abs.

"I ain't even gonna be mad at you 'bout that. Not with you lookin' the way you're lookin' right now." Her eyes clouded over with lust and she made her way over to the bed.

"It damn near killed me to say no." He sat up supporting his weight on his elbows.

"I thought that was a little unlike you to turn down sex. But, getting to see you like this is so worth it." She kissed him and let her hand wander down to his bulge. She squeezed his dick gently and moaned in satisfaction against his lips.

He moaned and rubbed against her hand.

"From the way you feel we ain't gonna have to bother with foreplay tonight. We can get right to the main event. Trust me you already got me wet enough. Or maybe you'd rather feel." She took his hand and put it inside her panties.

He ran two of his fingers over her dripping wet slit and teased her clit with his thumb. "I'd say that you're more than wet enough." He pushed his fingers into her pussy briefly and then he withdrew them.

"Then let's quit fuckin' 'round and start fuckin' 'round." She took his hand out of her panties. She sensuously sucked the two fingers that had been inside of her. She pulled her nightgown over her head and dropped her panties to the floor. She sat astride him her knees on either side of his hips.

"I think someone is mighty horny." He grinned.

"We've been fightin', babe, we haven't had sex in a week. Damn right I'm horny." She leaned over and kissed him deeply while pushing his shirt off of his shoulders.

"That's the only good thing 'bout us fightin'. The sex is always amazin'." He lifted his hips to help her get rid of his underwear.

"I don't know where you got those, but, baby they are hot as hell on you." She threw them across the room. She took a firm hold of his hard dick and she aimed it at the entrance of her pussy. She slowly sank down on every inch of his member with a satisfied moan.

"Damn, babe, you're so fuckin' tight." He groaned out. He rubbed her lower back. He knew from experience that she needed just a minute to adjust to his size and she would let him know when she was ready to really be fucked.

She rocked her hips back and forth a little bit as she got used to him. He was so big that it didn't matter how many times they had sex if they went through a dry spell of more than a couple of days she would have to readjust to him again. She moaned loudly when he sat up and took one of her nipples into his mouth.

He sucked, bit, and licked one of her nipples while he twisted the other gently. He then switched sides to even things out. He reached between them with his free hand and rubbed her clit.

She brushed a flyaway strand of hair out of her face and put her hands on his shoulders before she began to ride him up and down slowly.

He let her set the pace just like he always had and he always would. He didn't have much patience except when it came to her. He waited for her to build up a good steady rhythm before he started to meet her thrust for thrust. He loved it when she took charge and rode him like a wild stallion. There was something about the way that she took command and used him as her sex toy that turned him on like nothing else could. He brought his hands up to her chest and played with her nipples.

She bent down and mashed her lips against his. Normally she was all for him being in charge, but tonight she felt like setting the pace. She could feel her orgasm approaching rapidly. Her hips rose and fell at a quicker speed and she rubbed her clit against his pubic bone.

He slid his tongue into her mouth as they kissed. He threaded the fingers of one of his hands through her hair and he used the other to hold her hip. He could tell that she was on the verge of a massive orgasm and he was trying to help her along. He didn't know how much longer he was going to be able to hold out and he wanted to come with her.

Rayna grabbed her breasts and played with her nipples as she got closer and closer to the edge. "Oh God, babe, I'm gonna come." She whispered huskily against his lips.

"Come for me, baby. I've got ya and I'll be right behind ya." Deacon pumped his hips faster. He thrusted upwards every time she thrusted down.

She dug her nails into his chest and threw her head back her mouth open in a silent scream. "Oh, shit, yes, babe!" She cried out as her orgasm rolled through her body.

"Fuck, Ray!" He called out a second later as he emptied his load into her.

After her orgasm subsided she laid her head on his chest panting heavily.

His chest rose and fell rapidly like he had just run a marathon. A laugh rumbled from deep in his chest. "Still sorry that I skipped out on shower sex?"

"God no, babe, that was much better than shower sex." She kissed his chest and along his jawline.

"Mmm, you goin' for round two already? You know I ain't in my twenties anymore. It takes a minute to get charged up again." He teased her.

"I think I can help out with that just a little bit." She started to move her hips against him again.

"This time I'm gonna be in charge." He flipped them over so he was on top and he kissed her.

The next morning Rayna's eyes fluttered open and a smile came to her face. Her three boys were sprawled out in bed next to her. Her two little boys slept just like her big boy. A flush came to her cheeks; big boy was the perfect way to describe her husband. Her lusty thoughts aside she'd never been more in love in her life. She had these two perfect sons who were carbon copies of the man she loved more than anything in the world.

She'd never known this level of love and contentment with Teddy. She'd felt comfortable and safe with him, but she'd never known this level of passion with him. It would be a lie to say she'd loved him, but she'd been fond of him. She'd always be grateful to him for stepping up with Maddie and for giving her Daphne, but she was happier now than she'd ever been.

She ran her hand over the dark hair on top of Jaymes' head and then she did the same thing to Little Deacon. She couldn't believe how big they were getting already. They would be a year old in just three more months. The smile on her face widened when Jaymes opened his eyes.

"Good morning, sweet boy. Come over here by momma." She encouraged him.

Jaymes rolled over in the bed until he was right next to her. He giggled and babbled. "mama,"

She kissed both his cheeks. "How'd you sucker daddy into sleeping in the big bed? Who am I kiddin'? This is daddy we're talkin' 'bout everythin' ya'll do melts him. That's right daddy is your best buddy isn't he?"

Jaymes laughed and smiled at her. "Dada,"

"Yeah, I'm talkin' 'bout your daddy. You kinda like him don't you?" She cooed at him.

"I know, Deac, your momma and your brother are makin' an awful lot of racket and wakin' us up." Deacon lifted his namesake up in the air and kissed his cheek.

Little Deacon giggled gleefully.

"Deacon John, how many times do I have to ask you not to manhandle them like that?" Rayna cringed. She knew he would never do anything to hurt the boys, but she couldn't help worrying.

"You know that I wouldn't do it if I thought I was gonna drop 'em." He assured her.

"So, do I wanna know how they ended up in bed with us?" She asked.

"I thought since we'd already had momma and daddy alone time that it wouldn't hurt if they finished out the night in bed with us. I like havin' 'em in here. I miss 'em since they sleep in the nursery full time now." He shrugged his shoulders.

"You are so damn adorable in daddy mode that it's not funny. You like havin' sleepovers with 'em occasionally. I'm sure if you could get the girls in here too you would. Actually Daphne may jump at the chance. Teddy never wanted the girls in bed with us. Because of my touring schedule we never got any time together was his reasoning." She leaned over and kissed his forehead.

"Well, since we tour together and work together we don't have that problem. The way I figure they are only gonna be this little once and then they are gonna be like the surly teenager who wants nothin' to do with us most of the time." He rubbed his nose against hers.

The bedroom door opened to reveal Maddie and Daphne. Daphne launched herself into the bed and right in the middle of her parents.

Deacon grabbed her, tickled her, and kissed her cheek before he let her go.

"Mawmaw just got here and she said it's time for you two to get up. She's starting on breakfast." Maddie told them.

"She also said to repeat this word for word. 'I don't care if ya'll are up here playing slap and tickle finish up and get downstairs.' Whatever that's supposed to mean." Daphne parroted.

"Squirt, do yourself a favor and don't ask. Your mawmaw can be kinda ornery when she wants to be." Deacon blushed crimson red.

Rayna looked at him and laughed. "She knows us a little too well, babe."

"Uh huh, let's just get up and go downstairs." He retorted.

"Did she mean what I think she meant by that?" Maddie worse a disgusted look on her face.

"She meant exactly what you think she meant." Rayna confirmed.

"You both should be ashamed of yourselves for being so gross that even my sweet, innocent mawmaw knows what you do with your alone time." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Maddie, just stop talkin', baby girl. I know that you're a super cool teenager and we are totally lame, but come cuddle with your family." Deacon cut her off before she could go off on a rant.

Surprisingly Maddie didn't argue she just crawled into the bed and cuddled with her parents and siblings.

"Are your Aunt Bev and Aunt Tandy here yet?" Rayna asked. It was the day before Thanksgiving and June had insisted that she was going to teach all of her girls how to properly make pies.

"Nope and Scarlett isn't here yet either. When I talked to her she said that Gunnar was putting his fat pants on because he plans on being official taste tester." Maddie replied.

"I don't think I even have words 'bout your cousin. He's a little crazy sometimes. No wonder everyone makes a sport outta pickin' on him." Deacon laughed and shook his head.

"Deacon John! It's time to get up now!" June called from downstairs.

"I think we're gonna have to leave this bed whether we want to or not." Rayna sighed.

"Yeah, we better get downstairs before she comes up here to get us." Deacon replied.

* * *

"Hey, Jimbo, thanks for meeting me here." Amy smiled at her son. She sat in a booth in a diner.

"Let's be clear I'm here cause Hailey made me come. I figure it can't hurt to hear your side of the story though." JC sat down across from her.

"She was one of the only people that Vince listened to. It doesn't surprise me at all that you're so close to her." She replied. "I took a chance and ordered coffee for you. I figured that it was a safe bet that you drink it."

"I do drink coffee." He poured cream and a lot of sugar into his coffee cup.

"You don't drink coffee you drink syrup like Vince and Big Jack." She observed.

"I actually drink it black too. It all depends on what I'm in the mood for." He stared down at his coffee for a moment. "So, tell me your side of the story." He looked up at her his dark brown eyes contemplative.

"I loved Vince so damn much you need to know that. I went off the rails when he died. I got into a really bad scene. At least with Vince it was only whiskey. With me it was booze and pills. The only thing I knew for sure was I couldn't get better the way I needed to and take care of you. It also didn't help that you look just like Vince and I had to face the thing that was sending me into the tailspin every time I looked at you. I did a year of intensive rehab that Big Jack and Dixie paid for. You were happy and well-adjusted by the time I got out and I didn't want to uproot you again. You had a real family and I had a fresh start." She explained to him.

"So I'm the son of two addicts. That's a very comfortin' thought. I oughta tell Maddie to run now." He snorted.

"I'm not truly an addict in the classic sense of the word, but that's not all you are. I don't see you pouring whiskey from a flask into your coffee or sneaking a drink to stop your hands from shaking." She pointed out to him.

"You said that you got a fresh start by leavin' me behind." He changed the subject.

"Jimbo, you were the big winner in that whole mess. I was still broken when I found Phil. I love him, but not the way I loved Vince. I don't think I'll ever love anyone else that way. You were always on my mind though. I thought about you when I was pregnant with my other two kids. I know that you would have made a great big brother." She said.

"You have other kids?" Hurt flashed behind his eyes.

"I do. They are eleven and nine. A boy and a girl. If it's not too much for you I would really love for you to meet them sometimes." She replied.

"That's a really big ask. I'll have to think about it. Maybe we have to work to redefine what our relationship is before we get into all of that. I have a momma, a daddy, brothers, and sisters. This is just confusin' for me." He shrugged his shoulders.

"I know that and if you want to work it out together I will. If you want me to leave you alone and never speak to you again I'll do that too. You get to take all the time that you want to figure this out. There's no pressure here." She gave him a small smile.

"I think that would be the best way to go about this." He gave her a half smile in return.

* * *

"I'm here and I wore my sweatpants. I'm ready to start taste testing anytime you are ready for me." Gunnar announced loudly.

"Don't you think you need to pace yourself for tomorrow?" Rhett asked him.

"Thanksgiving is my holiday. Trust me I've got this." Gunnar assured him.

"I thought that we would go play around in the music room while they do whatever it is they are 'bout to do to my kitchen. I don't mean to spread tales, but it would be safest for us and the boys in there." Deacon picked up the twins.

"That sounds good to me. I'm convinced that I don't need to know what goes on in a kitchen. My momma always said that I need to find a woman that can cook or I'll be in sad shape." Rhett jumped to his feet quickly.

"But, how are we gonna taste test if we're in the other room?" Gunnar whined.

"Trust me they will let us know when it's safe." Deacon promised. He gestured with his head for them to follow him to the other room. "Elvis, come on, boy." He called over his shoulder to the dog. He shook his head when he saw he didn't plan on moving. "Alright, suit yourself you lazy old hound. Stay in here with the women and try to scrounge you a stray scrap of food."

"They're all cowards." Beverly shook her head at them.

"Momma, they ain't wrong to run for the hills. 'Bout the only thing you can make is fried chicken other than that it ain't edible." Scarlett said.

"And lord knows that my sister shouldn't be trusted with anything complex." Tandy smirked.

"Tandy, I say this with all the love in the world, but kiss my ass." Rayna grinned.

"Language, mom." Daphne warned her.

"How in the world does she live with Deacon and the mouth he has?" Beverly arched her eyebrow.

"I think she's immune to it by now. I don't even realize that he does it. When he first moved in he'd just let loose with a stream of the most profane words you've ever hurt in your life and her little eyes would get big and I'd call him down. Now he does it and we all just shrug it off. That being said I won't be surprised if the boys get kicked out of preschool for saying something they heard from daddy." Rayna laughed.

"Yeah, I've heard him get pretty bad too." Scarlett added.

"I tried to raise a gentleman, but a little more of his daddy came through than I had hoped." June shook her head.

Maddie texted away on her phone not paying attention to anything around her.

"Maddie, did you plan on putting the phone down and joining us at some point?" Tandy asked her.

"I was just texting JC. He was having breakfast with his mother and I wanted to see how it went." Maddie explained.

"It probably went fine. Amy isn't exactly horrible. She could deal with Vince that puts points in her book right there." Rayna chuckled.

"He's a big boy. I'm sure he's fine. He doesn't need you to comfort him." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"Leave her alone, babe, she's young. You remember what it's like to be that age and so in love that the very thought of spending a single second without that guy is torture." Rayna called her off.

"No, I'm pretty sure you're the only person I know who has ever behaved that way over a boy. You still behave that way over boys." Tandy arched her eyebrow.

"I am pretty crazy about my boys you're right there. However, there is only one man I've ever acted like that with in my life and I'm married to him." Rayna countered.

"That's enough outta both of ya. All ya'll settle down now. You ain't gonna learn anythin' if you keep flappin' your jaws." June opened up an old worn cookbook a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

"June, I didn't wanna be the one to have to tell you this, but I don't think my sister can be taught how to cook. Our mother couldn't cook and she took after her." Tandy had to get one more shot in on her sister.

"I would argue with her, but it's true. Why do you think Deacon does most of the cooking around here?" Rayna crossed her arms over her chest.

"That doesn't mean I ain't gonna try to teach you. It just means my job is gonna be a little harder." June smiled warmly.

"I think I need to record this." Maddie joked.

"Maddie, don't you dare. If a video of this ends up on YouTube I know where you sleep. I don't think it would be wise." Rayna looked at her pointedly.

"You know how dad feels about you threating me with my life." Maddie grinned.

"I'm not scared of your daddy. Trust me that is the last person on the face of this earth I have to be afraid of. That's the last person in the world that anyone has to be afraid of." Rayna shook her head. "June, teach away please."

"Maybe I should just stick to Daphne and Scarlett. They seem to be the only two in this group that aren't trouble makers." June's eyes shone with laughter.

"Don't let 'em fool ya cause they're quiet, momma. That's when you really have to worry." Beverly observed.

"If we are gonna do this I'm gonna require wine." Tandy announced. "Rayna, where did you hide it this time?"

"I didn't it's on the wine rack. His words to me were he's a grown ass man if he were gonna fall off the wagon he's the appropriate age to buy alcohol. He also said that he wouldn't waste a good trip off the wagon on wine." Rayna pointed over to where she kept her wine.

"Normally I don't agree with him, but this time I'm making an exception to that rule. He has a point. But he's not gonna tumble off the wagon because he knows what I would do to him. He's been suitably threatened not to screw up this time. So far so good as far as I'm concerned." Tandy grabbed a bottle of wine and the corkscrew.

"Mawmaw, what are we making first?" Daphne asked eagerly.

"First we are gonna start out with a chocolate pie. That should be easy enough. I'm even gonna cheat and let those of us in the room who don't listen well use instant pudding." June looked at Beverly, Rayna, and Tandy as she spoke. "I'll teach my three girls how to make it from scratch."

"Did she just imply that Maddie listens better than us?" Rayna grabbed three wine glasses.

"I'm fairly certain she did." Tandy opened the bottle of wine.

"That's what it sounded like to me." Beverly agreed.

"That's a flat out lie Maddie listens about as well as her daddy does. That's to say she doesn't listen at all. Deacon doesn't even do me the courtesy of pretending to listen to me anymore. He just does what he's gonna do no matter what I say." Rayna scoffed.

"I'm gonna open one of those wine bottles and drink it on my own. I think it'll make 'em more bearable." Scarlett muttered.

"Scarlett, you have a grandfather and an uncle that are recoverin' alcoholics." June gathered up everything that she would need to make this pie.

"If my husband hasn't turned me into an alcoholic yet ain't nothin' gonna." Scarlett retorted.

"JC offered to have you kidnapped so you didn't have to go through with marrying him and you turned him down." Maddie reminded her.

"I love the dummy don't get me wrong. It's the fact he's in a never endin' war with your boyfriend and his best friend that gets on my nerves. I'll admit that whatever Rhett does to him he deserves because he likes to give Rhett hell 'bout certain things that I'm not gonna bring up in front of Daphne, but you know what I'm talkin' 'bout." Scarlett replied.

"Everyone of ya'll just need to focus I promise that I won't say anythin' 'bout how much you talk once we get started." June got their attention.

Two hours into their misadventure in baking the kitchen was a disaster area. That probably had to do with the fact that Beverly, Rayna, and Tandy were on their third bottle of wine.

"I would ask what the hell is goin' on around here, but I don't wanna know." Juliette said as she stepped into the room.

"Juliette, I know that I have an open door policy with ya'll, but you might not wanna be here right now." Rayna greeted the younger woman.

"I'm not here for you. I'm here to talk to Maddie. I've already got Sadie talked into doin' a co-write with me, but I know that Maddie has an unfinished album." Juliette replied.

"You wanna do a co-write with me?" Maddie tried to contain her enthusiasm.

"Yeah, I wanna do a co-write with you. And I wanna do one with you and Daphne. Someone told me that I had to build my reputation back up and that this was the way to do it." Juliette smiled at her.

"Juliette, you can do all the co-writes you want with her later. In the meantime, if you ain't got anywhere else to be you're welcome to join us." June offered. She knew that the young woman had no family other than her husband and daughter.

"Ya'll wouldn't mind if I crashed your party?" Juliette smiled even wider.

"No, we would be eternally grateful if you crashed this party or at least I would." Scarlett spoke up.

"Juliette, there's pie." Daphne told her.

"And wine." Tandy lifted her glass in salute.

"Well, that's all you had to say. I'm in for sure." Juliette agreed. It felt nice to be included in a family for a change.

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter, I hope you guys enjoyed it. I'm sorry about the long wait. I had some stuff going on in real life, but I'm back now. I thought I'd throw a couple of chapters of family time in there before I get to the heavy stuff. I hope you enjoyed Rayna and Deacon making up. Until next time please review.


	82. Chapter 82

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 82

"If ya'll could stop fidgeting around that would be great. I promise that you ain't gonna have to be in these clothes too much longer." Rayna was mostly talking to Deacon when she said that.

They were all in their dress clothes and she had actually managed to get him to wear a tie.

"Please take this damn picture so we can get on with our day." Deacon begged the photographer.

He was less than keen on the fact that his wife had forced them all to get out of bed at this ungodly hour on Thanksgiving just to have pictures taken for their Christmas cards.

They stood in front of the fireplace each of them holding one of the boys with the girls in the middle of them.

He and the boys wore matching outfits while Rayna and the girls did as well.

"Just give me one more picture and we're done." The photographer said. He snapped his last round of pictures while he still had a compliant group.

"Can I see those?" Rayna asked.

"Of course, Ms. Jaymes." The photographer scrolled through all the photos and showed them to her.

"What do you think, Deacon?" Rayna looked over her shoulder at her husband.

"I think we look like a bunch of stepford mannequins. This don't even look like us. We look plastic and fake. You know this ain't gonna work. We tried it your way. Now we are gonna try it my way. Everyone go change. Make sure that you look nice, but keep it casual." Deacon made an executive decision.

"I'm just gonna go with this." Rayna handed Jaymes over to Deacon. "Since this is your idea you can be the one to redress them. It was hard enough the first time."

Ten minutes later everyone returned to the living room dressed more accordingly. Deacon and the boys wore jeans, flannel, and boots. Rayna had changed into a sweater and a pair of jeans. The girls changed into their everyday close. They all stood in front of the fireplace again.

"Hold on I almost forgot." Deacon held his hand up in a sign for the photographer to wait a minute. "Elvis, come here boy." He called for the dog.

Elvis trotted into the room lazily and sat at Deacon's feet.

"Now the whole family is here." Deacon smiled.

"Let's try this again then." The photographer snapped off another series of photos. "Ms. Jaymes, did you want to take a look at these?"

"Sure," Rayna looked as he scrolled through the photos. "I don't say this often, but my husband was right these are perfect." She beamed.

"I do know what I'm talkin' 'bout every once in a while." Deacon smirked.

"Send me the proofs for everything that you've shot. I'll probably order them all." Rayna told the photographer.

"In that case I will pack up and get out of your hair." The photographer smiled at her.

"Now, you need to go get those turkeys ready to fry or whatever it is that you plan to do with them. June should be over here any minute. She said she has things to cook and it's easier for her to do it here. We also have a much bigger kitchen than she does." Rayna instructed Deacon.

"I know I'm gonna get on it. We are cookin' for a damn army, babe. I'm fryin' two turkeys and momma is bakin' one and a ham. I don't think we are gonna have a shortage of food. I'm surprised that she ain't here yet." Deacon replied.

"That's because we're gonna be feeding an army, babe. Feeding Jimmy is like trying to feed five people and he's gonna be here. Then there's Rhett who eats more than any normal person should. Not to mention Gunnar. That's before we even get into Will and Mack. Avery is the only one of them that doesn't behave like a caveman." Rayna pointed out to him.

"You're right. We are about to have a houseful. I'm gonna go get started. Do you want me to take the boys out with me or will you be ok with them?" Deacon asked.

"I've got them under control. I'll let you know when your momma gets here." She pecked his lips.

"I love you so much, baby." He smiled against her lips.

"I love you too, babe. Don't forget to put a coat on. It's chilly out." She reminded him.

He grabbed a jacket and put it on. "Come on, Elvis, let's go outside, boy." He headed out to the garage where he had the turkeys in the spare fridge.

* * *

"Here, dad, mom said that you could probably use this." Maddie walked outside where Deacon was playing around with the fryer. She was bundled up against the cold and she had a steaming cup of coffee in her hand.

"As usual she was right. It's pretty cold out here with that wind blowin' off the lake. This coffee is just what I needed." Deacon took the coffee from her.

"Dad, if we aren't eating until later why are you frying these now?" She asked a pretty valid question.

"Did I ever tell you that the way to get your momma off your back is to make her think that you're doin' what she wants you to do? Right now I'm just out here makin' sure that this fryer works. I have no intentions of fryin' these until about three hours before it's time to eat. I've got two fryers and two birds. I figure on them both takin' around an hour and a half." He took a sip of his coffee and smiled at his daughter.

"I'll have to keep that in mind when it comes to mom. It sounds like you have everything under control out here, dad. I think mom is kinda going a little overboard." She replied.

"She's makin' a big deal outta it because it's the boys' first Thanksgivin' and it's our first as a family. Last year we were still kinda sneakin' round and we were low key 'bout it." He pointed out to her.

"What did you do for Thanksgiving before you and mom got back together?" Lately she had started to get a lot more curious about her dad's past.

"Most the time I spent it alone or me and some of the guys I know around time that didn't have families either would get together and do somethin'." He slipped his hands into his jacket pockets.

"Wow, that must have been really lonely." She looked at him sadly.

"I figured that I deserved it. I had my shot at the happy family and I screwed it up. Bein' alone was my penance for everythin' I'd put her through. Don't look at me like that. I don't want you feelin' sorry for me." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to his side.

"Dad, I know that you have a disease and you aren't the nicest person when you've been drinkin', but you didn't hurt her any more than she hurt you. Whatever it was you did to her you have to remember that she stayed and put up with it. She may have been justified to leave you, but she wasn't justified in keeping us apart. Unless you were abusing her which I know you weren't she had no reason to do what she did." She leaned into his side.

"You're pretty damn wise beyond your years sometimes. You just vocalized what I've been feelin' for the last couple years. This still really bothers you sometimes don't it?" He looked down at her concern shining in his eyes.

"It doesn't bother so much as make me sad. I really love having you for a dad and there's this whole side of me that I know nothing about." She admitted.

"Don't hold it against your momma she only did what she thought was best for you. I'll answer any questions that you have 'bout yourself. You like to ask really hard questions though and some of it is difficult to talk 'bout." He replied.

"I don't hold it against her anymore. I just want to know more about myself." She told him.

He leaned down and kissed the top of her head. "I think the questions that you got are the normal teenage stuff and I don't have an answer for ya. That's somethin' only you can figure out. That don't mean that I won't be here any time you need me though."

She wrapped her arms around his midsection. "I love you, dad."

"I love you too, Maddie." He hugged her tightly.

"What about when you were a kid?" She asked.

"What about it?" He asked in reply.

"What did you do for Thanksgiving?" She wondered.

"That was just another day to avoid Paul. He'd sit in front of the TV watchin' football and drinkin' beer. Momma always took a shift down at the diner on Thanksgivin'. Your Aunt Bev and I would go down there and eat. Sid always insisted on it. Both sets of my grandparents would come down too. It was easier that way. We didn't have to worry 'bout somethin' settin' Paul off that way. It wasn't nothin' special, but to us it was." He recounted.

"Thanks for telling me that. I know how hard it is for you to talk about it." She hugged him a little tighter.

"The best Thanksgivin' I ever had was over at the house in East Nashville. We'd just been out on the road for a year for our first major tour where your momma was the headliner. I asked her what she wanted more than anythin' and she told me she wanted a home again. I bought that place sight unseen and I surprised her with it when we got back. Well, she insisted that we were gonna have Thanksgivin' with the band. We were all young and didn't have families back then. Anyway she got it in her head that she was gonna cook somethin'. She cooked alright. She had every smoke detector in that house goin' off. Thank God I didn't let her think she was gonna cook the turkey. That was the first time in a long time that I felt like I was part of a family." He laughed at the memory.

"Mom really shouldn't be allowed to cook anything outside of her limited skill set." She shivered against the cold.

"You've got that right." He wrapped his arms around her tighter when she shivered. "Baby girl, you're freezin' you should go on in the house."

"Maddie, your mawmaw is here and she would like your help with something." Rayna stepped out the patio door.

"Go on, go help your mawmaw. She don't really need it, but she really likes passin' down her traditions to her girls." He kissed her head and sent her into the house.

"It looks like you two had a good talk." Rayna slipped her arm around his waist.

"We did, baby. We had a really good talk. I don't think she's quite as grown up as she'd like to think she is. She still needs her daddy." Deacon pulled her closer to him.

"She's always gonna need her daddy. She's always needed her daddy. I've said it before and I'll say it again she's become a completely different person since you've been around and she's actually pleasant to be around again." Rayna laughed.

"She's a Claybourne she comes by that bein' difficult stuff naturally." Deacon laughed with her.

"So, I was thinking. You should probably swing by the sober living facility and get Paul. I know how you feel about him, but I also know that it's not gonna kill you to be the bigger man. It's been a couple months and it's just good to check in on him every once in a while. I'm not saying that you've got to forgive him or welcome him with open arms, but at least you can say you tried." Rayna told him.

Deacon looked at her. "I don't know if this is you, momma, or Bev cookin' this up. But I'm gonna go along with it. No one should have to be alone on the holidays no matter how much they deserve it. It's not the most fun experience in the entire world."

"Good now that you've agreed I can tell you that you don't actually have to go get him. Scarlett and Gunnar are going to do it." Rayna bit her lip.

"You were pretty damn confident that I'd say yes." Deacon's eyes twinkled.

"This may have been one of those times where you had no choice in the matter. You were going to do what we wanted you to either way." Rayna smiled and kissed his cheek.

"You're lucky I love you. That's all I can say." Deacon hugged her so tight her feet left the ground and he spun her around.

"Deacon John, you stop that right now." Rayna laughed uncontrollably.

"I'm only stoppin' cause I'm dizzy and not cause you told me to." Deacon sat her back on her feet.

* * *

"Alright, how are we gonna do this?" Will asked. The guys were out in the yard. They were getting ready to play a game of football.

"You and I will be captains. I'll even let you pick first." Deacon told him.

"Ok. I'll take JC." Will predictably picked him first.

"Mad Max," Deacon picked his old friend. Max and Hailey had decided to stay in town and spend Thanksgiving with JC.

"Gunnar," Will made his next pick.

"Rhett," Deacon picked his baby brother.

"Mack," Will chose his boyfriend.

"Avery," Deacon picked again.

"I'll take Daphne." Will said when it came down to the girls.

"Maddie, you're with us." Deacon called his daughter over.

"Gee, thanks, dad." Maddie rolled her eyes and laughed.

"Buck, Glenn, you two sure you don't want to get in on this?" Deacon called over to the two men.

"You have your fun, Deacon." Glenn called back to him.

"I'm good." Bucky passed.

"Deacon, don't you mess around and get my star pitcher hurt." Lamar warned him.

"He'll be fine, Lamar." Deacon assured him.

Rayna walked over to where they stood. "I can't believe I've been talked into this." She grumbled. "Deacon, Will, come here." She heled up a quarter for them to examine. "You can both see that there is nothing wrong with this quarter. Will, you can call it."

"Heads," Will called the flip.

Rayna flipped the quarter and let it land in the grass. "Heads, Will it's your pick."

"We will take the ball first." Will announced.

Deacon tossed him the football. "Take it you're goin' down either way."

"Deacon John, listen to me. Do not get hurt. You are not as young as the rest of them are. I will not take you to the hospital if you break something. You'll have to beg one of your beloved girls to do it for you. Also keep in mind you are a guitar player. Don't snap your wrist. If you can't play guitar you will be hell to live with." Rayna lectured him with her hands on her hips.

"Don't worry so much, babe. I'll be ok." Deacon pecked her lips and he walked over to the patio where the boys sat on June's lap all bundled up in little snowsuits that made them look like teddy bears. He kissed them both on the head. "Wish daddy luck. Next year you two will probably be out here playin' with us." He ran off to join the game.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"They're up by two touchdowns what are we gonna do?" Rhett whispered inside the huddle.

"That's gonna depend on how confident Maddie is in her ability to catch a football. She's fast. She can easily out run them, but you throw hard." Deacon had already cooked up a plan in his head.

"I'm still in prime condition. I can keep up with her for as long as it takes him to throw the ball. I'll catch it and then I will lateral it to her." Max added.

"Perfect plan, Max. Then all we have to do is make sure Maddie reaches the end zone." Avery put his two cents in.

"I can do this, guys. But what about the other touch down?" Maddie asked.

"One play at a time, Maddie. I'll explain that to you durin' our next huddle." Deacon laughed.

"Ready break," They clapped their hands in unison.

They all lined up Rhett stood behind Avery who was acting as the center for this play. "Down, set, hike!" He yelled out.

Avery hiked the football to him.

Rhett dropped back in the pocket while Max and Maddie ran down to the other end of the field. He could see Max advancing on him so he threw the ball as hard and as far as he could.

The pass hit Max right in the hands and tossed the ball to Maddie.

Maddie picked up her speed and ran the ball into the end zone.

"And that is one hell of a touchdown." Bucky said admiringly.

"Is what they just did even allowed?" Tandy of course had no idea what she was watching.

"Yeah, babe, it's allowed. I know more about football than I ever wanted to know. Football Sundays used to be a staple in my house when we were younger." Rayna just rolled her eyes.

"I think I saw flames shoot out of that ball it was flyin' so fast." Deacon laughed at the look on Will's face.

"That's ok we're still up by seven." Will dismissed his comment. He waved his team into a huddle.

"How are we gonna play this?" JC asked.

"You're the quarterback, but here's the play. Rhett and I are both evenly paced when it comes to speed. I can't blow past him, but I'm gonna fall in step with him and then I'm gonna cut to the right hard you'll know when to throw the ball." Mack whispered.

"Sounds like a good play to me." Gunnar agreed.

"Me too." Daphne chimed in.

"Break," They chanted.

JC lined up behind Will who had the ball. "Blue twenty-two, hut, hut, hike!"

Will hiked the ball between his legs.

Before JC could even drop back to pass Rhett rushed in and forced him to fumble the ball. He scooped the ball up and ran it into the end zone for a touchdown.

"What the hell was that?" JC demanded.

"You try doing somethin' with the mountain you call a brother-in-law up in your face." Will shoved him playfully.

"Come on we've got this same play, guys." Mack rushed them into a no huddle offense.

"Rayna, you may have to call this game on account of them all bein' so damn juvenile." Hailey laughed.

"Don't think that I don't have a close eye on them because I do. If Will, Jimmy, and Gunnar weren't on the same team we would have more a problem to deal with. With the teams arranged this way we should be ok." Rayna laughed as well.

"Rhett looks like he's in top form out there that's for sure." Sadie added.

"Mhmm, I don't want to hear 'bout what you have to say regarding Rhett's form." Rayna snorted. She couldn't prove it, but she was sure there was something going on with her friend and her brother-in-law.

"Daphne, come here for a minute." Paul called the girl over to him.

Daphne looked between her parents unsure about what to do.

"Well, go see what Paul wants." Deacon told her. He sent Rayna a look that said watch her.

Daphne trotted over to Paul happily. "What is it?" She asked him.

"I can't tell you out loud. I have to whisper it in your ear." Paul cupped his hand and whispered something in her ear. "You got that?" He smiled.

"I've got it." Daphne assured him and she ran back over to her team.

On the next play instead of throwing the ball to Mack as originally planned JC handed the ball off to Daphne and let her run with it.

Deacon touched her with two hands and then he scooped her up in his arms and kissed her all over her face. "Is that what Paul told you? Huh? Did he tell you to run with the ball?" He spun her around.

"Daddy, stop your beard tickles and you're making me dizzy." Daphne giggled loudly.

Deacon sat her back on her feet laughing. "Nice try, Paul." He called to his father.

Rayna and June both shared a look. For Deacon to speak to his father so good naturedly was rare.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"I'm honored to present the trophy for the first annual Claybourne Family Turkey Bowl to the Old Dogs." Rayna handed a trophy in the shape of a turkey and hung gold medals around their necks.

"That's right." Deacon and Max bumped knuckles.

"I can't believe you let those two old men beat you." Rayna shook her head at Will and his team.

"We didn't exactly let them beat us we gave it a good try." Will defended.

"In our defense they don't play like old men. They play like they are our age." Mack added.

"Besides that they have Rhett and Maddie." Gunnar scoffed.

"I don't wanna hear it. Ya'll shake hands. And then let Scarlett take your picture so you can go change clothes. Deacon has turkeys to fry." Rayna laughed and shook her head at them.

* * *

The guys all crowded around the big screen tv in the living room to watch football. The more accurate term for what they were doing was taking a nap. Daphne laid stretched out with her head in Deacon's lap. He was running his fingers through her hair absent-mindedly while he half watched the game.

"Deacon, you need to go check on those turkeys. They should just about be done." Rayna stuck her head into the room. She smiled at the attention he was paying to Daphne.

"Squirt, you gotta move. I gotta go get dinner ready." Deacon told her.

Daphne just yawned and snuggled closer to him.

Deacon moved her so that she was laying on the couch. "I'll be right back." He laughed.

"Come here you." Rayna wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him.

"What was that for?" Deacon smiled against her lips.

"Today has just been absolutely perfect. And you've even done your best to get along with both our fathers. You don't know how much that means to me." Rayna kissed him again.

"It's no big deal, baby. This means a lot to both of us." Deacon replied. "I better go get those birds." He grabbed his jacket and went outside.

"Daddy, do you want a drink?" Rayna asked to be polite.

"I'm not gonna turn it down." Lamar replied.

"Paul, sweet tea right?" Rayna double checked.

"That's right." Paul confirmed.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Deacon craved up all the turkeys and the ham, but before they ate he picked up his tea glass. "Before we eat I just wanted to say how thankful I am for everyone in this room right now. It don't matter that some of us ain't related by blood we are still family. This last year has been an absolute blessing and the good lord willin' we will have many more like it together. It's the people like you that make the bad times better and the good times that much sweeter. Happy Thanksgivin' everyone." He toasted.

His toast was answered with a chorus of. "Happy Thanksgiving."

"Let's eat before any of these frail little ol' boys starve to death." June picked up a plate and started passing it around the table.

"Good lord knows that Jimmy and Max will both starve to death if they don't eat soon." Hailey commented.

"I may starve to death if we don't eat soon. June was crackin' the whip about us not sneakin' food before dinner." Juliette laughed.

"That's because if I let ya'll into the food I would have had to let the boys into it too and they wouldn't have left a crumb." June replied with a straight face.

Rayna looked over at Deacon with nothing, but love in her eyes. The only thing that she regretted at the moment was not doing this with him sooner.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Until next time please review.


	83. Chapter 83

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 83

"Ok, one more photo in here and that should be good." The photographer said. Rayna and Deacon were being featured on the cover of Country Weekly. They were currently in the kitchen of their house.

"I don't know 'bout anyone else, but that sounds pretty damn perfect to me." Deacon said.

"Honey, you would say that." Rayna shook her head at him.

"What are the chances of us getting a couple family shots?" Mark Dixon the writer for the article asked.

"The boys are nappin' right now, but they should be up any minute. I'd say that the chances are pretty good. I already laid their outfits out for them." Rayna replied. She was a little more open with the press than she used to be. On the plus side if she gave them a glimpse of what they wanted they wouldn't be hounded by the press every time they left the house.

"I'll go grab them for you." Bucky volunteered since Rayna and Deacon were both busy answering questions for the article.

"Thanks, Buck, we appreciate it." Deacon told him.

"I'm only going to get them because they are easier to deal with than you two are." Bucky called over his shoulder.

"I would dispute that, but we have put that poor man through hell over the years." Rayna chuckled.

"That's puttin' it mildly." Deacon agreed with her.

"I'd like to ask you a few more questions before we do more pictures if you're up for it." Mark said.

"Fire away." Rayna replied.

"The name of your new album is Love Remains. Where did ya'll come up with that?" Mark asked.

"It was just somethin' that Deacon and I took from a conversation that we had while we were sitting out on the balcony that's off our bedroom. We were just taking stock like people do. I said I wonder how it is that we still even like each other after everything we've been through together." Rayna set it up so that Deacon could fill in the blanks.

"I said under all the heartache and pain the love that we have for each other remained. That conversation came back into play when it came time to name our album." Deacon picked up.

"You two have numerous number one hits together, but this is your first joint album. What was that like for you?" Mark asked.

"It was different that's for sure. I'm used to bein' in the studio and recordin' with her. I just ain't used to both our names goin' on the album cover." Deacon admitted.

"Did you produce this album the way that you did About A Girl?" Mark asked another question.

"I did and I think that this one may be even better than the last one I produced. I know what I'm doin' now." Deacon joked.

"We all knew that you were a great musician we just had no clue how good until your album came out. You really cleaned house at the CMAs." Mark commented.

"That was as big a shock for me as it was for everyone else. I didn't expect all those nominations much less that I would win in every category. The only one I thought I had any hopes of winnin' was album of the year because of the way everyone kept carryin' on 'bout that album. Nothin' surprised as much as male vocalist of the year did with all the incredible talent I was nominated with. I got kinda choked up on that one." Deacon replied.

"Rayna, you've been pretty busy as well. A sold out tour, the head of a label that has blown up overnight, and being a mother. That's just really impressive." Mark addressed her now.

"It's a good thing that I didn't like sleep all that much anyway." Rayna cracked.

"Do you have a new album in the works yet or not? I wouldn't know how you could find the time between running your label and promoting Marcus Keen's album without him." Mark went on.

"It's a balancing act that's for sure. I would hate to see an album as good as Marcus' go to waste just because he decided to get his band back together. Yes, I am working on a new album. My brilliant husband is producing it and we hope to have it out sometimes after the first of the year." Rayna smiled at him.

"This has been a record year for both of you in more ways than one. We've focused on the professional side of it now let's get into the personal side. You're newlyweds and you have twins that are a little less than a year old. Some people would say that you moved pretty quickly." Mark said.

"No, we moved slow and then fate decided to step in and make us catch up to where we should be." Deacon corrected him playfully.

"I can't believe that it'll already be a year of marriage for us at the end of the month. Sometimes it seems like it's been days and other times it feels like it's been longer than that. In the best way possible of course. Time kinda loses meaning when you're with the love of your life and are as blissfully happy as we are." Rayna went a little more in depth.

"I have to ask. What's it like being parents to twins?" Mark asked.

"It's a lot easier than bein' parents to teenagers that's for sure. At least with the boys it only takes both your hands to deal with them. With the sixteen-year-old we gotta make sure that she ain't gonna run off to Vegas with her boyfriend. The preteen ain't so bad she ain't embarrassed to be out in public with us." Deacon was just on a roll.

"It's an experience and just let me say at times the only thing that saves them is how adorable they are. It's different. You have to have an eye on both of them at the same time. For me it was a totally new experience when they were born. Not only are there two of them they are boys. I was used to little girls. There was a learning curve I had to adjust to there for a minute. And I'm sure that there is another one coming when they get older. Their daddy is already their best buddy. Momma is gonna have to be their prison warden. I don't mind that one little bit it's worth it to see how the three of them light up when they see each other." Rayna chuckled.

Bucky walked back into the room carrying the boys. "These two are dressed and ready to go. I stuck my head into Daphne's room and she said that she's ready whenever you need her. I don't know about Maddie. I didn't want to risk walking into the beast's lair to find out."

"That's ok, Buck, I'll go up and get her in gear. I don't blame you for savin' yourself on that one. We don't disturb the beast unless we have to. School and feedin' time are the only times we venture in that room." Deacon was full of jokes.

"Deacon, don't let her hear you say that even joking." Rayna shook her head and took the boys from Bucky. "You two do your momma a favor and stay clean for a little while." She kissed both their cheeks.

* * *

Frankie unloaded a case of beer into the cooler and stood up wiping his hands on his jeans. "Anythin' else you think we're gonna need tonight, Bev?"

"I can't think of a thing. And if we do for some reason have to restock the bar tonight it won't be the big deal that it is most other nights. We are closed for a private party tonight and that means we get to work at a slower pace." Beverly replied.

"At least we're gettin' a little bit of a break." He grabbed a glass and filled it with tea.

"You only say that because you don't realize how much this group of people are capable of drinkin'." She retorted.

"Now, it can't be all that bad." He leaned forward on his elbows and gave her a flirty smile.

"It's a lot worse than you seem to think it is." She leaned in closer to him.

"Frankie, Beverly, ya'll stop pullin' each other's pigtails and get to work now. You have to make sure that this bar is stocked up and everythin' is ready to go for tonight." June walked in the door and started issuing orders.

"Momma, what does that even mean?" Beverly had a very good idea of what her mother meant by that, but she wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of reacting.

"Miss June, we already have things set up for the most part." Frankie chimed in.

"Beverly, you know damn well what that means. I shouldn't have to spell it out for you. Ya'll just see that you get the other part set up. We have the honor of hosting Highway Sixty-five's Christmas party and I want to make sure that it's done right." June told them.

"I don't know whether that's an honor or a curse. I've seen the amount of alcohol these people can put back and I'm not so sure that Deacon is the only one that needs to be in AA." Beverly snorted.

"If they can drink more than Deacon that's somethin' I need to see myself. I went on benders with him that lasted days." Frankie threw out there.

"Beverly, be nice. Your brother is not your father." June scolded her.

"I know that. And, Frankie, you're a bigger drunk than Deacon ever dreamed of bein'." Beverly glared at him.

"Good lord, no matter what I say it seems to piss you right off. Excuse my language." Frankie shook his head.

"Maybe if you didn't put your foot in your mouth every time you opened it that wouldn't happen." Beverly rolled her eyes.

"That's enough outta both of you. We still have things we need to do. I'm gonna go back in the kitchen and make you some lunch I can't do that if I gotta stand out here and referee ya'll." June gave them one last warning to behave and went back to the kitchen.

* * *

"These three are for you." Rayna handed out glasses of sparkling cider to Deacon and the girls. She always double checked for Deacon in this situation and she was sure that Maddie would be drinking later she just wasn't going to be getting it from her at least not while she was still sober. She had no control over what happened when Drunk Rayna came out to play that's when Deacon was in charge.

"Are you sure?" Deacon sniffed his glass just to make sure.

"I'm positive. I poured those three myself." Rayna replied.

Maddie hurried up and took the glass that Will passed her and switched out the one her mother had given her before anyone could notice.

"Go easy on that stuff it'll hit you harder than those fruity drinks I normally sneak for ya." Will whispered.

"Will, Rayna is gonna kick your ass one of these days when she figures out that you're the one that supplies Maddie." Mack whispered to him.

"I don't think I have too much to worry about. She knows it has to be one of us and she hasn't said anythin' 'bout it yet." Will shrugged his shoulders.

"You only think that you don't have to worry. I'm the one that they're comin' after first if they ever find out for sure that we've been supplyin' my cousin with alcohol." Scarlett pointed out to him.

"Relax, if all else fails we will just blame it on Gunnar like we always do." Avery told her.

"Hey," Gunnar objected.

"If I were all of you I'd watch out. One of these days Gunnar is gonna get sick of bein' picked on and he's gonna snap." Juliette warned them.

"Gunnar is harmless that's why they all pick on him." Scarlett retorted.

"That's right we are smart enough to know which one of us is the wounded animal in this herd." Rhett agreed.

Rayna raised her glass and cleared her throat once everyone had one. "Here is to the best damn group of artists and record execs it has ever been my pleasure to work with. In the last year we have accomplished much more than I would have ever thought possible. This time last year we were just starting out, but we turned this into something great. We swept the CMAs. That wouldn't have been possible without each and every single person here tonight. So, here is to another year of happiness and success."

They all raised their glasses and drank from them.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Cash, there you are. I was starting to think that you weren't going to make it." Maddie greeted her friend cheerfully when she showed up.

"I've been out all day trying to hook up some gigs." Cash replied.

"That sounds fun." Maddie said.

"I haven't found anything yet, so if you want to do some more writing together I'm free." Cash smiled at her.

"I'm off school the next couple of weeks for Christmas break, so yeah I have some time to do some writing with you for sure. Jimmy is going to be out of town for a few days, but I can always ditch him. I know I have a few writing sessions scheduled with Juliette, but other than that I'm all yours." Maddie said after thinking it over.

"Just let me geek out for a minute. I can't believe that you know Juliette Barnes well enough to write with her." Cash retorted.

"Did you want me to introduce you?" Maddie offered.

"I'm not going to turn that offer down." Cash replied.

Maddie led her over to the table where Juliette sat with Avery.

"Hey, Maddie," Juliette smiled widely.

"Juliette, I have someone here who wants to meet you." Maddie pointed at Cash. "Juliette Barnes, this is my friend Cash. Cash, this is Juliette." She introduced them.

Juliette quickly gave the younger woman a once over and offered her, her hand with a polite smile. "It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too. It's an honor really." Cash gushed.

"Slow up there, I still put my pants on one leg at a time like everyone else." Juliette laughed.

"Kasey has nothing, but the nicest things to say about you." Cash replied.

"You've worked with Kasey. She and I kinda started out in country at the same time." Juliette replied.

"I just got off tour with her not that long ago we did some writing together." Cash confirmed.

"I'll have to keep in mind that you're a songwriter." Juliette gave her another smile.

"By keep in mind she means she will have me remember for her." Avery joked lightly.

"Cash, I've forgot my manners. This is Avery he's Juliette's husband." Maddie pointed at Avery.

"Gee, thanks, Maddie." Avery teased her.

"Well, you are Juliette's husband." Maddie rolled her eyes playfully.

"I don't need to be reminded of that." Avery shot back.

"Come on, Cash, we are just gonna go so we don't have to be witnesses when she kills him." Maddie guided her away from the table.

Juliette let the smile she had plastered on her face slip. "Avery, there's somethin' 'bout that girl that I just don't like. I can't put my finger on what it is, but I think she's bad news. I'm gonna get Emily to do a little diggin' for me. I don't wanna see Maddie get hurt."

"Juliette, she seemed perfectly nice to me. You just have a problem with other women for whatever reason." Avery tried to calm her down.

"And I'm tellin' you that there is somethin' off 'bout her. It takes a shady person to recognize one. Since I'm no saint I'm in a pretty good position to judge." Juliette crossed her arms across her chest.

"Ok, whatever you say, Juliette." Avery agreed with her because it was easier.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"This is quite a predicament that we find ourselves in." Rhett grinned at Sadie.

"Rhett, what are you talkin' 'bout?" Sadie asked him.

Rhett pointed to the sprig of mistletoe above their heads. "That's what I'm talkin' 'bout."

"You better behave yourself, boy." Sadie grinned at him.

"You like it when I don't behave." Rhett countered.

A blush crept up Sadie's cheeks. "You know what I mean."

"Kissin' me is a hardship on ya now is it?" Rhett kept badgering her.

"Ok, fine, if it'll shut you up." Sadie put both her hands on his cheeks and laid a wet kiss on his lips.

Rhett wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her body flush against his.

Rayna let out a loud wolf whistle. "It's about damn time ya'll. We've all known for months that you were tiptoeing around something."

"And then you say things about me needing to know about your sex life." Tandy gave her sister a look.

"You and that one over there sucking face with the guy young enough to be my son are the worst about being up in my business. I get to be up in both of yours. Not that I wanna be up in yours specifically. I don't need to know those things about Bucky." Rayna had obviously been drinking.

"Rhett, get you some, son." Deacon cheered his brother on.

"You have daughters don't encourage him to objectify women." Tandy slapped the back of his head.

"Tandy," Bucky shook his head at her.

"I was not doin' whatever the hell you just said I was doin'. I was just bein' a supportive big brother. That's how brothers speak to each other. It's not a big deal." Deacon rubbed the back of his head.

"I don't wanna hear one word outta you with the things you've told me." Sadie walked over to the table.

"You're gonna hear me though. He's older than me. I'm not the one of us that's a cougar." Rayna arched an eyebrow at her.

"Oh, stop it, he's not that young. And if either one of us is a wild animal in bed it's him not me." Sadie smirked.

"I'm gonna take this opportunity to be anywhere else in the world right now. You know what? I think I hear Mack callin' me." Rhett tried to sneak away.

"Rhett Timothy, are you behavin' yourself like a good southern gentleman should? You treatin' her with respect?" June cut off his hasty retreat.

"Yes ma'am, Momma June. I ain't done nothin' untoward that she didn't ask me to do." Rhett had taken to calling her that now.

"Good boy, you're my redo I can't have you turnin' out as rotten as your brother." June patted his cheek.

"Hey," Deacon protested.

"Deacon John, you know that I love you." June smiled at him.

"I love you too, momma." Deacon took her hand and squeezed it. "Baby, I'm gonna go call the nanny to check up on the boys I will be right back."

"I'll be here, lover." Rayna bit her lip.

"Don't tempt me, woman." Deacon kissed the top of her head.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"So, Will, with my busy schedule we really haven't had a chance to talk yet." Mack stood up at the bar next to his boyfriend.

"About what?" Will asked.

"Do you have any plans for Christmas?" Mack didn't know why he was being so awkward about this. It wasn't like he didn't stay with Will when he was in town anyway. He shouldn't be this nervous.

"The only thing I have to do for Christmas is go over to Rayna and Deacon's on Christmas Eve. Why do you ask?" Will searched his face for an answer.

"My family decided that they would accommodate me by coming into town for Christmas. My baby sister just turned twenty-one and I thought that we could take her out one night to all the bars. And if I'm not totally reading this situation wrong I'd like for you to meet my parents." Mack finished his voice barely above a whisper.

"You want me to meet your parents? I mean you know that I can never introduce you to my family, because they want nothin' to do with me." Will shrugged his shoulders.

"Will, my parents know that I'm gay. I think they knew before I did. They are nothing, but supportive and they really want to meet you. If you're not ready though I can make an excuse for you." Mack looked down at the floor.

"Is my big, burly hockey player blushin'?" Will hooked his fingers in Mack's belt loops. He kissed him tenderly. "Babe, I'd love to meet your family and help you show your sister 'round. I'm in as much as I thought I was in love with Kevin I know now that I wasn't. I love you, Mack."

"I love you too, Will." Mack rested his forehead against his.

"Just one thing. We may not wanna bring your sister back to my place. Women take one look at Rhett and their hormones go crazy." Will laughed.

"I don't think we have anything to worry about when it comes to Rhett." Mack hugged him.

"I think that's the most affection I've even seen you two show each other." JC walked up and signaled the bartender for a drink.

"Don't you have a girlfriend to go moon dog after?" Will gave him a look.

"She's too busy talkin' to Cash and trust me I don't wanna be anywhere near whatever the hell they are talkin' 'bout. It's probably a bitch fest 'bout men. I'll stay here where I'm safe." JC picked up his drink and sipped it.

"You are actually a very smart man." Mack patted his shoulder.

"I know that it's how I survive. She may only be sixteen, but she can nag like a woman two times her age when she gets it in her mind to." JC replied.

"You give her so much to complain about." Will made a show out of rolling his eyes.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"This year's Christmas party is tame when compared to last year's." Juliette commented to Rayna.

"I know last year Deacon proposed and we announced my pregnancy. About the only thing noteworthy from this year is gonna be the fact that Sadie and I are about to perform a very drunken rendition of Santa Baby. You're more than welcome to join us if you want to." Rayna grinned at her goofily.

"Deacon is gettin' lucky tonight isn't he?" Juliette laughed.

"That is not even the word for what he's gonna get tonight. He's getting hot dirty sex." Rayna's filter was obliterated when she was drunk.

"And that was probably more than I ever needed to know, but thank you for sharin'." Juliette wasn't used to this side of Rayna.

"You asked that was your mistake. Have you not heard the way my sister talks about us?" Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"I've heard and I've heard more from your mouth than I think I want to know, but that still doesn't stop you from oversharing every chance you get." Juliette replied.

"I'm just givin' the people what they want." Rayna giggled.

"Rayna! I've got tequila shots." Sadie yelled to get her attention.

"If you'll excuse me. My duty calls." Rayna made her way over to Sadie. She couldn't help the feeling of gratitude that washed over her for everything that she had accomplished in the last year.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Sorry for the long wait. Until next time please review.


	84. Chapter 84

A/N: Thanks to my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 84

"Unless you plan on helpin' me don't just sit down there and watch me." Deacon looked down at Elvis from the roof. He was putting Christmas lights up.

"Babe, what are you doing up on the roof so early?" Rayna was out on the balcony that was off their bedroom.

"I wanted to get these lights up before I ya'll got up and wanted to decorate the inside of the house. I'm just 'bout done. I decided I'd wait for everyone to be up before I start on out back. I want to put some lights up on the barn and on the patio." He replied.

"Look at you goin' all out on the decorations. I used to have to put a charge in ya to get you to do this." She smiled up at him.

"I'm doin' it for those four kids. I want 'em to look back and have nothin', but happy memories of the holidays." He finished stringing the lights and moved over to where the roof sloped above their room. He slid down onto the balcony next to her.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his. "Good mornin', handsome."

"Baby, we have a really big house and it took longer than I thought it would to get that all done." He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"You're really good to us, baby. And we appreciate you so, so much." She buried her face in his chest.

"I'd move heaven and earth for ya'll and you know that." He rested his chin on the top of her head. "Where are the boys?"

"What would you say if I told you they are in my closet where they can't get in trouble?" She laughed softly.

"I wouldn't believe you for a minute as much as you love those boys you love that closet more." He called her bluff.

"They are crawling around the bedroom where I can see them. I have them confined to this half of the room." She admitted. "And I do not love my amazing closet more than my baby boys." She slapped his chest.

"Darlin', you have a love affair with that closet." He smiled and waved at the boys who both had their hands pressed up against the glass of the door.

"Those two won't rest until they get their little fingerprints all over every clean surface will they?" She smiled and shook her head.

"Not a chance, baby. Let's go in it's chilly out here. I'll make us all some breakfast before you and the girls get to bakin' cookies." He opened the door easily and the twins tried to crawl outside.

"Where do you boys think you're goin'?" Rayna stooped down with her hands on her knees.

"Ya'll just go on back the way you came. You two little monkeys." Deacon got down on their level.

The boys giggled at him.

"Does daddy look silly with that stocking cap on? You aren't used to seeing him like that." Rayna cooed at them.

Deacon took the hat off and his hair stuck up in different directions. He picked the boys up. Both their hands went right for his hair. "Yeah, there's daddy's hair. You can get away with that with me I'm not momma. Momma freaks out if you touch her hair."

"That is not true at all. I don't want them touching my hair after I fix it. You know as well as anyone how long that takes." Rayna corrected him.

"Believe whatever you need to believe to make yourself feel better, darlin'." Deacon laughed at her.

"I'll go get those girls up if you wanna take those two down and get started on breakfast." Rayna volunteered.

"It's a deal, babe." Deacon agreed.

* * *

Christmas music played in the background as the family unpacked their decorations in the living room. The tree was already up and they were going to decorate it as soon as they finished with everything else in the room.

"Babe, you wanna get the stockings out and hang them on the mantle?" Rayna was digging through a box.

"Sure, baby, I've got 'em." Deacon grabbed the stockings.

"I'll help you, daddy." Daphne volunteered.

"Thanks, Squirt." Deacon handed the stockings to her.

"You're welcome." Daphne clutched the stockings in her hands.

"First we have Deacon, I don't know who that guy is, but he must be important or somethin'." Deacon hung up his stocking.

"Only in his own mind." Maddie teased him.

"Next we have Rayna. Hmm, that right there sounds to me like someone who might think she's hot stuff." Deacon joked.

"Watch yourself, boy." Rayna winked at him.

"Maddie, AKA the beast. That sounds about right to me." Deacon laughed at the glare he got for that comment.

"Whatever, dad." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Now, we have Daphne. That must be the princess." Deacon smiled at Daphne.

Daphne giggled at him.

"This one belongs to one of the bosses. Deac." Deacon chuckled. "And this is the other boss's Jayme."

"Don't forget about Elvis'." Daphne held the last stocking up.

Deacon hung it up. "That's done. Now we can get started on this tree. Before we do though I have a surprise for all of you. Sit down on the couch and I'll get 'em." He sat seven little boxes down on the coffee table.

"What's in these?" Maddie inquired.

Deacon held his finger up in a sign for her to wait a minute. He opened the lid on one of the boxes and pulled out an ornament that was shaped like a log cabin. "This is our first Christmas in this house and our first Christmas as a family of six. I thought if ya'll don't mind that I'd like to start a new tradition. We've made this house a home in a very short time and home is where the heart is. So I was thinkin' that every Christmas from now on this'll be the first ornament to go on the tree and if ya'll ladies don't object I'll be the one to put it on."

"I think that is a really good idea, babe. You have been so great about making sure that we keep our traditions that you haven't asked to observe any of your own. But this is something that can be ours that we started together." Rayna smiled at him widely.

Maddie didn't really care one way or the other and she said as much. Daphne agreed enthusiastically.

"'Fore I put that ornament on let's open these other boxes." Deacon opened another box and took out an ornament that was a convertible. "This is momma's."

"Darlin', you remembered." Rayna threw her head back and laughed.

"I told you I'd buy you a convertible one day." Deacon winked at her. It was an inside joke between the two of them. He opened another box and pulled out a yellow Jeep ornament that looked just like Maddie's car. "This is Maddie's ornament this year since she got her first car."

"Dad, that's actually pretty cool." Maddie shrugged her shoulders like it didn't matter. In reality it meant a lot to her.

"I'll take that as a positive comment." Deacon opened another box and took out an ornament shaped like a microphone. "This is Daphne's because she got to go on her first big tour and start work on her first record."

"Thank you, daddy." Daphne was really very grateful to have Deacon in her life.

"Now that brings us to the boys." Deacon opened two more boxes. He came out with two ornaments that said Baby's First Christmas on them. Each of them bore one of the boys' names.

"Babe, those are too perfect for words." Rayna melted a little bit over how thoughtful he'd been.

"I thought they were pretty perfect too." Deacon replied.

"What did you get yourself?" Rayna asked.

Deacon took another ornament out of the box he'd taken hers out of. It was a guitar. "As long as I have you four and music I can't think of another thing that I need in my life."

"Go put that first ornament on, so the rest of us can help." Rayna pecked his lips quickly.

Deacon made a big show of putting the first ornament on the tree and then he stepped back to admire his handy work. "Alright, ya'll, get on in there and get this tree decorated."

* * *

"Hey, babe, look what my mom sent in the mail." Avery held up without a doubt one of the ugliest sweaters to ever be seen on the face of the earth.

"Oh, Avery, that sure is somethin'." Juliette made a vague comment. She tried to keep her facial features from betraying her true feelings about the sweater.

"She made one for you and Cadence too. She wants us to take a picture in them and send it to her." Avery told her.

Juliette scrunched up her forehead. "That was so thoughtful of her."

"Don't worry we wear them once for this picture and we forget that they exist. I know how ugly they are, but she means well." Avery assured her.

"Oh thank God, I thought you had lost your mind for a second." Juliette breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm not the most fashion forward guy in the world, but even I recognize how ugly these are. I don't even know what she was thinking." Avery shook his head.

"I guess she was thinking that she misses her son and her granddaughter and she wanted you to know that she's thinkin' 'bout you. It's what momma's do or so I'm told." Juliette threw herself down on the couch next to him.

"Your mom loved you, babe. In the end she did what she had to, to protect you. She gave her life because of how much she loved you." Avery took her hand and squeezed it.

"I needed to see that before she died. There are some times that I don't know that I'm doin' this right with Cadence. I do my best to make sure she knows how much I love her, but I don't know that I'm gettin' that message through." Juliette admitted.

"Trust me, you're doing great. There's no manual when it comes to raising kids. We are both doing the best that we know how and that's all we can do. We've got this though. We have a healthy happy daughter and that's all we can ask for." Avery wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

"I really hate it when you're right." Juliette pouted. Another box sitting on the table caught her eye. "What's this?"

"I know that you really rather I always be wrong and you always be right." Avery kissed her forehead. "Glenn had that sent over by messenger. They are a bunch of mockups of what my album cover could look like. I'm supposed to narrow it down to five that I really like and then go from there."

"Smart ass," Juliette snorted. "Lucky for you I'm really good at this. Open the box and let's see what they sent over. Rayna hired a really great photographer to do your head shots and an awesome designer to do your cover art. I'm very excited to see how it turned out."

Avery opened up the box and pulled out the different samples of CD cases. "There are quite a few to choose from here, but they all look awesome. I can't believe I'm that much closer to putting out my first album. For a minute there I didn't think this was ever going to happen."

"And I didn't think my career would ever bounce back from that Charles Wentworth mess. I guess we both have a lot to be thankful for." Juliette went through the CD cases. She picked out one that had a black and white picture of him on the cover. "I like this one. It gives off just the right amount of bad boy vibes."

"You sure you want me to become Highway Sixty-five's resident bad boy? You know that women like to throw themselves at bad boys." Avery gave her a smoldering look.

"Since I used to be a bad girl and you're my husband I don't think we have to worry 'bout that, darlin'. Only a fool would go sniffin' round what's mine." Juliette grinned at him.

Avery kissed her and then pulled away when Cadence cried. "She has absolutely lousy timing."

"She does, but there is one up side to this." Juliette rested her forehead against his.

"What's that?" Avery asked.

"We can get her in that sweater and take that picture for your momma now. Then we get to bury those ugly ass things in the back of the closet and forget about them." Juliette answered.

"I really like the way that you think." Avery smiled. He knew that his mother meant well, but those were the ugliest sweaters he'd ever seen in his life.

* * *

"Do you really have to go back to Texas?" Maddie and JC were parked out in the middle of a clearing on Rayna and Deacon's ranch. They were laid out on a blanket in the bed of his truck.

"I have to make an appearance because my sister bullied me into it. Don't worry I'll be back in time for Christmas Eve. I don't wanna go back to Texas at all, but my family is there. I feel more at home here than I ever did there. There I was just a constant reminder of the son they'd lost. I'm not so sure they ever saw me for me and not Vince. That's not to say that I wasn't well loved or taken care of because I was. I just think that they expected me to be the son that Vince should have been and like him I was a let down." JC leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

"What are you talking about, Jimmy?" Maddie lifted her head from his chest and searched his eyes with hers.

"We have a workin' cattle ranch. Vince was the oldest boy and he was supposed to take over. Instead he ran off to Nashville and never looked back. Bobby, God love him, he means well, but he's really not all that bright with business. And while I look just like Vince, Jeremy got all his undesirable traits. So, he's out. That left me to carry on daddy's legacy. Except I joined the Army and lit outta there the first chance that I got." He explained.

"I don't think that I'm really following you here, babe. I have no idea what you're talking about. I guess I just always assumed that Vince was poor like dad." Maddie admitted.

"No, he wasn't poor he just basically got pissed off and ran away from home. Daddy's an alcoholic too the only difference between him and Vince is that he can hold down a steady job and function. He doesn't let it affect his professional life, but once he's done with work for the day he drinks until he goes to bed. Anyway, momma had enough of it at one point and they divorced. The guy she married next was no better he was a drunk and he liked to beat on her and her kids. Vince I guess never really forgave her for the hell that her ex put them through and he never forgave daddy for not fighting harder for her. To voice his displeasure and to rebel against them. He did somethin' that only Vince he could do. He dumped all his responsibilities and he came here." He explained to her.

"No wonder he and dad were so close." She commented.

"He didn't have it quite as bad as Deacon did. The funny thing about that is from what I understand he was a way worse addict than your daddy. He was a fan of drugs and booze. From the little things that Hailey said when she was here last month. I got the feelin' that Deacon and Vince were closer than brothers even though they didn't have all that much in common. Vince had more in common with Rayna than he did with Deacon, but that's how things worked out." He shrugged his shoulders.

She nodded her head to show that she was listening to him. "How many brothers and sisters do you have anyway?"

"Bobby, Hailey, Allie, and Jeremy. Jeremy if you haven't figured out by now is my half-brother. Vince was pretty good at spreadin' his pollen around. Homeboy is 'bout him. Like I said he's just like Vince. A mess to put it in a word. He's seven years older than I am. Allie was the baby before he came along. It was her boyfriend that I had to shoot." He gave her more of his story.

"How come if feels like I know so little about you?" She asked.

"The past in just that the past. I went through the motions back in Dallas I wasn't really alive. I didn't come alive until my boots hit Nashville. And I don't think my life truly started until the day I met you." He rubbed his hand up and down her back.

She pressed a heated kiss to his lips. "Why do you have to say things like that and make me want you when you know we don't have time for sex? I'm being forced to spend the night with my grandma against my will, because she wants us to help decorate her house and bake cookies with her. I've tried to get out of it and dad absolutely refuses to let me."

"The anticipation will only make it better when we get to. You need to go over to your grandma's house and do whatever ridiculous thing she asks you to do. Trust me one day when she's gone you'll look back on those memories and smile. Plus, grandmas are easily talked into lettin' you do things that they know damn well you shouldn't be doin'." He smirked.

"I really like the way you think." She kissed him again.

* * *

"Gunnar, how is that fire comin'?" Scarlett asked her husband.

"Daphne and I are working on it that's how it's coming." Gunnar retorted.

"Maybe I should call dad and ask him for help. He always has a fire going in our fireplace and he doesn't have any problems." Daphne suggested.

"We can do this without Deacon. I can start a fire." Gunnar shook his head.

"So, we may have this fire sometimes within the next twelve hours." Maddie quipped from behind her phone. That was the first time in a while that she had bothered to look up.

"Maddie, you are still here and your soul hasn't been sucked into that phone." June kissed the top of her granddaughter's head.

"She's sixteen, mawmaw, that thing is attached to her hand." Scarlett pointed out to her.

"Scarlett, I don't need any help from you, thanks." Maddie told her.

"I thought someone needed to explain away your personality defect." Scarlett winked at her.

"Don't you have enough to explain away with your husband?" Maddie arched her eyebrow.

"Alright, that's enough outta both of you." June called them down. "Daphne, when you're done helpin' Gunnar maybe you'd like to come in the kitchen and help me make the hot cocoa. Scarlett, Maddie, you two go find the Christmas movies. I ain't askin' ya'll I'm tellin ya." She laid down the law.

"Sure," Daphne chirped happily.

"Of course," Scarlett agreed.

"Whatever you say, mawmaw." Maddie put her phone away with a groan.

"Don't sound like spendin' time with us is the most horrible thing in the world for ya. Your boyfriend will still be there tomorrow." June gave her a look.

"It's not that. I am happy to be here." Maddie assured her.

"You're just like your daddy. When I think you can't get no more like him you do." June chuckled softly. "How are them boys doin'?"

"They are takin' a nap in the playpen right now. They will probably be up any minute." Daphne reported.

"Alright, I'll make sure that they both have a bottle ready for when they wake up." June smiled. She loved having all of her grandchildren under one roof. Especially Deacon's kids. She'd been with Scarlett since the time she was born. She hadn't gotten to do that with Maddie. She was glad that she got to do that with the boys. That was the whole reason she had moved to Nashville was to be closer to her grandkids. For the first time in her life things were actually good and she planned to cherish every moment of it.

"Make sure ya'll grab a couple cartoons to make sure that the boys have somethin' that will hold their attention too." She added.

"I got it, mawmaw." Scarlett acknowledged her.

"And we've got the fire." Gunnar gave Daphne a high five.

"I think we are all set then." June's head nodded in approval.

"I'm ready to help you now, mawmaw." Daphne said.

June held out her hand to the little girl. "Come on then."

Daphne fit her hand inside the older woman's, which was soft and nurturing despite all the years of hard work she'd done. "Is this another one of your secret recipes?"

"You know it. I've gotta show all my secrets to my girls, so my ways will live on after I'm gone." June replied.

"How'd you get up there without waking your brother up?" Gunnar went over to the playpen.

Jaymes stood holding himself up on the side. He babbled at Gunnar and gave him a smile in reply.

"They can pull themselves up now, Gunnar. And they are really quiet about things. They are like sneaky little ninjas." Maddie told him. She carried a stack of movies over to the coffee table.

Gunnar picked the little boy up. "I heard that mawmaw has a bottle in the kitchen for you. Would you like that?"

Jaymes clapped his hands. That idea obviously met with his approval.

"I thought you might like that." Gunnar carried him into the kitchen.

"Should I wake Deac up? I know that Rayna will flip out if those two get off schedule." Scarlett asked.

"Mom says that Little Deacon sleeps just like Big Deacon and if either of them are actually asleep for a change she isn't going to tempt fate by waking them. That being said he will probably be awake in a minute. He started doing this thing where he is a pretty light sleeper. You can move him while he's asleep, but if you make too much noise it'll wake him." Maddie replied.

Scarlett looked down at her baby cousin. "God, he sleeps just like Uncle Deacon."

"Scarlett, honey, you have no idea how much like your uncle he really is. Both these boys are the spittin' image of their daddy, but Little Deacon acts just like him. He even crawls the way his daddy did." June recalled fondly. That had been back before Paul had taken a turn to the dark side.

A knock sounded at the front door.

"Can one of ya'll get that? I'm sure Beverly misplaced her keys again." She thought nothing of her daughter knocking on her door. She regularly had to let her into her apartment above the garage because she had temporarily lost her keys again.

"I've got it." Scarlett answered the door. A shock look appeared on her face when she saw who was on the other side.

"Hi, Scarlett," Paul gave her a disarming smile.

"Paul, what are you doin' here?" Scarlett questioned him.

"Can I come in?" Paul asked.

"Hell no, you can't come in." June stepped in between her granddaughter and her ex-husband. "What are you doin' here?" She pushed him back to the door stoop.

"Mawmaw," Scarlett said cautiously.

"Scarlett, go on back in the house. I'm gonna be fine. He's not gonna do anythin' to me. He knows what's good for him." June assured her. She closed the door behind her. "What are you doin' here, Paul?"

"I came to see you, June. We are in the same city and I don't see you. I just came from a meetin' and I thought I'd stop by." Paul explained.

"Paul, it's too little too late for you to be tryin' to take this track." June put her hands on her hips.

Paul looked wistfully into the front window. "I see that you have all the grandkids tonight. That must be nice for ya."

"You're the one who gave all this up. The reason that you're not in there with us right now is 'cause of you. You have no one, but yourself to blame. I woulda gone right on bein' married to you if you coulda kept your hands to yourself." June informed him.

"I came to apologize. I know that there's no forgiveness for what I did, but I'm sayin' sorry none the less. I truly did love you, June. I will die lovin' you. I understand that you don't feel the same way anymore you couldn't. I'm workin' my steps though and I'm tryin' to be a better man." Paul explained to her.

"Paul, I loved ya 'til I realized that you'd always love whiskey more than you loved me or our family. After that I just made excuses for you. You were all I'd ever known and I couldn't leave ya. I don't hate you, cause I can't. You gave me Beverly and Deacon. I let you say your peace and it's time for you to go now." June told him firmly.

Paul nodded his head in resignation. "I'll see you 'round, June." He walked back to his truck and drove away.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I'm thinking that there are only ten or so chapters left in this story before I start on the sequel. Don't worry there is still a lot of good stuff coming and I'm not done with these characters. I just think this story has run it's course and it's time to start on a new one. Until next time please review.


	85. Chapter 85

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 85

A bonfire burned out on the back patio. JC and Will stood around tending it each of them with a beer in their hand. They were also waiting for the food they were in charge of cooking to be done. Will was cooking ribs and JC had been smoking a brisket all day.

"Why is it that where makin' barbeque is concerned they always give us the job?" Will asked.

"Because we are from Texas and as far as I'm concerned Texans are the only ones who know how to do it right." JC replied.

"That's true. I'm makin' seven different types of ribs. I've got a dry rub, and six different types of barbeque sauce. I think that should cover it." Will laughed.

"I hope it covers it. If this turns out like Thanksgivin' there ain't gonna be a damn thing left." JC shook his head.

"It's like feedin' an army." Will agreed with him.

"Look at your boyfriend in there makin' the rounds effortlessly." JC inclined his head to where Mack was inside walking from group to group.

"Just remember that he's your girlfriend's gay BFF anytime you think you wanna say somethin' mean 'bout him." Will joked.

"I don't have anythin' mean that I wanna say 'bout him. He makes my best friend very happy and that's all that matters to me." JC clapped him on the back.

"Seriously, are you two out here livin' your bromance while the rest of us are in the house starvin?" Juliette walked out to check on them.

"No we are out here cookin' over an open flame like real life cowboys and shit. You can take your pampered little diva ass back into the house if you don't like it." Will crossed his arms over his chest.

"Will, did you slip into a coma and forget that you're not talkin' to Gunnar? You know that you don't wanna mess with me. I don't think you could handle it if you did." Juliette basically issued a challenge.

"You don't wanna go there, Juliette. You got no idea what me and JC are capable of together." Will didn't back down.

"Will, I invite you to try it anytime that you're ready. Just remember you're quite possibly gonna be out on tour with me this summer. The last thing you want is to be on my bad side." Juliette warned him.

"I think I'll take my chances." Will countered.

"You know what? I don't know why I even bother with either one of you. Here, Rayna asked me to bring this to you. It's hot apple cider spiked with whiskey. She said for you to knock yourselves out." Juliette handed them each a Styrofoam cup.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXX**

"You ready to report to spring training next month?" Lamar walked over to where Rhett stood leaning up against the kitchen counter.

"I'm more than ready. I report a week early right?" Rhett looked away from where his father sat off by himself.

"You are my star. You can report any time that you want to. You're not just a pitcher. Report a week early or with the rest of the squad it's up to you." Lamar could see that he didn't have his undivided attention. He snapped his fingers in front of his face. "You here with me?"

"Yeah, I'm here." Rhett shook his head to knock the cobwebs out.

"Don't worry 'bout that old son of a bitch, son. Just because you got half your DNA from him doesn't mean he's worth your time. As lowly as I've thought of your brother at times he's not worth his time either." Lamar gripped his shoulder affectionately.

"I know that. He's never given a damn 'bout me. I ain't got time to give a damn 'bout him. He's the one that's missin' out here not me." Rhett agreed.

"Gentlemen, I hate to interrupt the two of you, but I couldn't pass up the chance to introduce myself." Jeff walked over to them. He had been itching to get an introduction to Lamar for months now. "Jeff Fordham, Mr. Wyatt. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Jeff. I've heard things about you." Lamar shook his hand.

"If you heard them from your daughter I would say take them with a grain of salt. She and I don't have the best working relationship together." Jeff admitted.

"She can be a pistol to deal with. I know that better than anyone. What exactly can I do for you, Jeff?" Lamar could see that he had an ulterior motive.

"I heard that you're still looking for a CEO for your team and I think that I could be your man." Jeff told him.

"Rhett, do you mind excusing us for a minute while we talk business?" Lamar turned to the young man.

"Of course not. I should tell you though in the short time I've known her there's not many people I've seen that Rayna doesn't like, but she really dislikes him." Rhett picked up his drink and walked off.

 **XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Hey, ya'll, come here. Santa dropped off a couple presents early for you. Let's see what he left." Deacon sat down in the middle of Cadence, Little Deacon, and Jaymes wearing a Santa hat. He carried a bright red bag with him. He pulled out three wrapped boxes. He handed one to each of the kids. "Ray, Avery, I think these young'uns are gonna need some help."

Rayna and Avery got down in the floor with the kids.

"Cadence, what did Santa leave for you with Uncle Deacon?" Avery helped his daughter open the package. Inside was a little baby doll. "Oh, look at this." He took the doll out of the box it had come in and handed it to his daughter.

"Now let's see what Santa left you two little demons." Rayna helped her sons rip into the brightly colored paper. "You both got trucks like daddy's to play with. Oh my goodness."

Deacon took the trucks out of the packaging and gave them to his sons. "Santa figured that they needed them." He pulled himself out of the floor. He found Micah and Daphne. "Now, I know that ya'll are a little big for this, but humor me. Santa brought ya'll a little somethin' too." He handed them each something out of the bag.

Daphne opened up a really nice notebook for her to write songs in. "This is awesome, thanks, dad."

Micah unwrapped a pair of expensive drumsticks. "Wow, thanks, Uncle Deacon." He hugged the older man tightly.

"You're welcome, Micah. Your Uncle Gunnar told me that you really like to play the drums. My best friend swore by those sticks." Deacon hugged him back.

"Hey, what about me?" Maddie asked him.

"I ain't got nothin' in here for you. You're for sure way too old." Deacon took a box out of the bag and threw it to her. It was an empty box for a car stereo with a bow on it.

"Dad, no way! Tell me that you didn't." Maddie gushed.

"I did. You've been beggin' for it for months and Santa thought that you've been behavin' yourself enough. Is it the right one?" Deacon winked at her.

"Yeah, this is the right one. This is better than the right one. This is the newest one. How'd you get into my Jeep without me knowing?" Maddie asked.

"Just remember that you have an insomniac for a father and that answers your question." Deacon replied.

"Tell me that you put the seat back where it goes. You always leave my seat all the way back." Maddie groaned.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Missy." Deacon laughed. He checked his watch. "Momma, Lamar, Paul, I thought that you three might enjoy readin' the Night before Christmas to the kids before they all start to pass out."

"Yes, sir, I've got the book right here." June held it up.

"You sure we shouldn't save the Grinch for daddy?" Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"It would certainly be fitting." Tandy sipped her glass of wine.

"That's enough out of you two." Lamar pulled his reading glasses out of his pocket and slipped them on.

"Daphne, Micah, get those other three little ones and come over here." June waved them over.

Maddie looked over at JC and gestured with her eyes outside to the barn.

JC nodded his head in reply. They each slipped out as quickly and quietly as they could while everyone else was still distracted.

"Do you think they know that they ain't foolin' anyone?" Rhett whispered to Mack.

"You were sixteen once. You know that they don't give a damn." Mack laughed.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXX**

"Here, Paul, why don't you make yourself useful?" Deacon handed his father a guitar.

"What do you want me to do with this?" Paul looked up at him confused.

"I assume you still know how to play one. I thought that you could play while we sing some Christmas songs." Deacon suggested.

"Yeah, I would like that a lot." Paul agreed.

* * *

"Alright, ya'll, Santa did things right this year. Find the stack of presents with your name on it and dig in." Deacon said the next morning. They were all dressed in matching pajamas. Stacks of presents were piled in the living room.

"I think maybe Santa got a little carried away." Rayna arched her eyebrow and looked at her husband.

"Santa got it just right." Deacon winked at her.

They watched the girls open their presents and helped the boys open theirs before the two adults thought about touching theirs.

"Mom, dad, you guys have to open your presents now." Maddie told them.

"What Maddie said." Daphne agreed with her sister.

"You go first, Ray." Deacon handed her a present that was from him.

Rayna opened the box and found a set of keys inside. "Deacon John, what are these?"

"Why don't you go look out the front window?" Deacon smirked at her.

Rayna got up and went to the window. She let out what could only be described as a girlish squeal when she looked out the window and saw a dark blue Mustang Convertible sitting in the driveway. "Oh my God, Deacon, you didn't!"

"I did. I told you that one day I'd get you another one. Except I did one better that. I got you the same one. It took me months to track it down, but I finally found it and it's in perfect condition." Deacon replied.

Rayna wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply. "Baby, I can't believe that you went through all this trouble to find her."

When Lamar had kicked her out of the house he'd forced her to leave her car behind. She had really loved that car. Her mother had left it to her in her will, but it just wasn't worth fighting with Lamar over. Deacon had promised her that one day he would get her another one just like it when they were rich and famous. It had taken him longer than he meant for it to, but he had finally made good on his promise.

"Darlin', it was no trouble at all. I made you a promise. You know that I keep my promises." Deacon hugged her a little tighter.

After a moment Rayna pulled away from him. She picked up a box and handed it to him. "Go on and open that."

Deacon tore the paper off the box and smiled when he saw what was inside. "You bought me a new bass boat. Babe, this is perfect."

"I knew that you've really been wantin' one and how much you love to fish. I can't wait to see you and your boys out on that boat fishin' together. I know your two princesses won't get on it with you unless it's for you to take them swimmin'." Rayna joked.

"I can't wait to take 'em either." Deacon smiled wider.

Maddie and Daphne both handed Rayna and Deacon each a box.

They opened them. They had given them each a framed picture of all four kids together with the dog.

"This is perfect, ya'll." Deacon's eyes actually teared up.

"I love you four and that silly dog so much." Rayna gave them a watery smile.

"We thought that you could put that on your desks at the office." Maddie explained.

"We thought that you would like a picture of us. We didn't know what else to get you." Daphne chimed in.

"You did really well." Rayna kissed both of their heads. "Why don't you give daddy those other presents that we picked out for him?"

Deacon opened three more boxes. One had new flannel shirts, one had new jeans, and the other was a new pair of cowboy boots. "I think ya'll know me a little bit too well. Ya'll girls give your momma those presents that you picked out for her and I paid for. Sorry, darlin', you know I have no luck when it comes to pickin' girly stuff."

Rayna opened her presents and found a bunch of new clothes. "You found two little helpers that are amazing at it and that's all that matters, babe."

"I did get you one more thing though. I picked this out myself and I know you're gonna love it." Deacon passed her another box.

Rayna laughed when she opened it. The box contained a hoody, a t-shirt, and a pair of pajama pants. "Baby, this runs a very close second to the car. I love it."

"I knew you would. That's your hint to leave my sweatshirts and pajamas alone." Deacon leaned over and kissed her. "Why don't you take the girls for a ride in your car while the boys and I clean things up and get the house ready for the family to come over?" He whispered in her ear.

"Darlin', I've been stealin' your clothes since we met I'm not gonna stop now. And I think that that's a great idea." Rayna grabbed her keys and jumped to her feet. "Girls, last one out to Betty is rotten egg you better get movin'." She rushed out the door with the girls chasing after her.

"Mom, can I drive?" Maddie asked.

"Not on your life, Maddie. Maybe in a church parking lot if I'm feeling generous." Rayna scoffed at her.

* * *

"Hey, hey, what's the matter, buddy? It's ok." Gunnar scooped Jaymes out of the playpen that was set up in his and Scarlett's bedroom. He put the little boy over his shoulder and patted his back. "Let's go downstairs so we don't wake Deac and Scarlett." He carried him out of the bedroom quietly.

The twins were staying the night with them because Rayna and Deacon had gone out to celebrate their anniversary a night early.

Gunnar grabbed a bottle out of the fridge and sat Jaymes on the couch. He picked up his guitar after he gave the baby his bottle to hold.

"They tell me that you like to be sang to. I have just the song for you. It's one of my favorites. You just drink your bottle and I'll do the rest." He started to strum his guitar and hum softly.

" _There is a young cowboy that lives on the range. His horse and his cattle are his only companions. He works in the saddle and sleeps in the canyons. Waiting for summer his pastures to change. And as the moon rises he sits by his fire. Thinking about women and glasses of beer. And closing his eyes as the doggies retire. He sings out a song which is soft, but it's clear. As if maybe someone could hear he says."_

He launched into a James Taylor song. James Taylor was one of his favorite artists and he'd had a big impact on his music.

" _Goodnight you moonlight ladies, rockabye sweet baby James. Deep greens and blues are the colors I choose. Won't you let me go down in my dreams. And rockabye sweet baby James."_

Jaymes eyelids started to droop as he sucked his bottle. Gunnar's singing was having a very calming effect on him.

" _The first of December was covered with snow. So was the turnpike from Stockbridge to Boston. The Berkshires seemed dream-like on account of that frosting. With ten miles behind me and ten thousand more to go."_

Scarlett crept down the steps from the bedroom. She'd woken up to see Gunnar and Jaymes gone. She wasn't too worried, but she knew that those two had a tendency to make a mess together. She smiled to herself as she saw how attentive her husband was being to her baby cousin.

" _There's a song that they sing when they take to the highway. A song that they sing when they take to the sea. A song that they sing of their home in the sky. Maybe you can believe it if it helps you to sleep. But singing works just fine for me."_

Gunnar looked over and saw that the little boy was almost out. He put down his guitar and picked him up. He rocked him gently and hummed in his ear. _"Goodnight you moonlight ladies, rockabye sweet baby James. Deep greens and blues are the colors I choose. Won't you let me go down in my dreams. And rockabye sweet baby James."_

By the time that Gunnar had sang the last note Jaymes was sound asleep in his arms.

Scarlett walked up behind the couch and wrapped her arm around her husband. "That was so sweet and sexy, babe. When the times comes you're gonna make an incredible daddy."

"That ain't you dropping a hint is it?" Gunnar looked up at her confused.

"No, we don't even have a finished album the last thing that we need to be thinkin' 'bout is havin' a baby right now." She pressed a kiss to his lips.

"Thank God, I don't think we're ready for a baby either." He replied.

"Come on let's get back upstairs. I don't exactly trust Deac not to crawl out of that playpen. Rayna said that she's convinced he's gonna do it any day now and I don't want it to happen on our watch." She took him by the hand.

"That's all we need is to have to explain to your aunt and uncle what we let happen to their baby." He stood up and followed her up the stairs.

* * *

Rayna and Deacon had a pallet built in front of the fireplace at the cabin. Unless the kids were with them they never quite made it upstairs to the bedroom. All the lights were out and tiny white candles provided the only light in the room. They were laying there naked in each other's arms doing a little innocent kissing.

Deacon pulled away from her long enough to check the timer on his phone. "Five, four, three, two, one." He counted down.

"Happy anniversary, baby." Rayna smiled up at him.

"Happy anniversary, Ray." Deacon dipped his head and kissed her.

Rayna deepened the kiss and rubbed against him wantonly.

"Hold that thought for just a minute." Deacon reached over for a scroll and handed it to her.

"What's this?" Rayna unrolled it curiously.

"That is a song I wrote just for you. I did some readin' the traditional first anniversary gift is paper and I thought that this was fittin' for us. Can I play that for you?" Deacon reached for his guitar before she could answer that question.

"I would love for you to play that for me." Rayna smiled. She watched his fingers move over the strings in a trance. He still mesmerized her when he played.

" _She's like starin' at the sun. She could easily blind someone. Other women I see none. She's like starin' at the sun. She gets on to you under your skin like a tattoo she'll always be there. She holds on stuck in your head like an old song. She ain't goin' nowhere."_ He sang softly while staring into her eyes. After all these years she still took his breath away.

" _She's like standin' in the rain washes all my cares away. At the end of a long hot day she's like standin' in the rain. She gets on to you under your skin like a tattoo she'll always be there. She holds on stuck in your head like an old song. She ain't goin' nowhere."_

" _She gets on to you under your skin like a tattoo she'll always be there. She holds on stuck in your head like an old song. She ain't goin' nowhere. She gets on to you under your skin like a tattoo she'll always be there. She holds on stuck in your head like an old song. She ain't goin' nowhere."_ He paused to grin at her.

Rayna smiled back at him.

" _She's like finally comin' home and seein' that light in the window on. After bein' gone too long. She's like finally comin' home. Standin' in rain. Starin' at the sun."_ He strummed the closing chords of the song. She made him feel all those things every day.

Rayna took the guitar out of his hands and kissed him deeply. "As wonderful as that was. I just want my husband to make love to me now."

"I can arrange that." Deacon flipped them over so he was on top of her. Before either of them knew it his member was buried to the hilt in her.

Rayna wrapped her legs around his waist and dug her fingers into his back. "Oh God, Deacon." She moaned out softly.

He fused his lips to hers and started to pump his hips in and out of her in a steady rhythm. His fingers left white marks on her hips from him pressing down so hard.

She raked her fingernails down his back and thrust her hips against his every time he pushed into her. Something about making love to him felt so right. It always had and it always would. If she had things her way another man would never fill her the way he was right now ever again.

He dipped his head and took turns flicking each of her nipples with his tongue. They hardened in his mouth and he gave a satisfied smirk. He bit down gently on one of her nipples and marveled at the sound it brought forth from her mouth. Every time he pulled out of her he made sure to drag his length across her sensitive clit.

She buried her face in his neck and she proceeded to leave a trail of love bites across his shoulder. She was hanging on by a thread and she was trying not to let go before he was ready. She wanted to come with him. She took his earlobe between her teeth and nibbled on it. She knew exactly what that would do to him.

"Christ Almighty, Ray, are you tryin' to kill me?" Deacon grunted. He picked up the tempo of his thrusts. He knew that he was going to hit the point of no return at any minute and he wanted to get her there first. Given the fact that this would be the fourth or fifth time he had made her come tonight he had to work a little harder for it.

She gave a sexy throaty laugh. "Not at all, baby, I'm just tryin' to make you come." Her breath was hot against his ear. She squeezed her walls around him.

"Fuck, baby, you keep doin' that and I ain't gonna be able to control whether I come or not. You're still hot as hell." Sweat popped up on his brow and the muscles in his back rippled as he stroked in and out of her.

"Yeah, baby, right there, I'm gonna come." Her body started to shudder underneath his and she let out a loud moan as she came.

Her walls clamped around him tighter and any little bit of control he had left was gone. He emptied himself into her with a grunt. He laid on top of her supporting his weight on his arms. "Jesus, woman, you make me crazy as hell."

"But you love it." She smirked.

"Hell yeah I love it and I wouldn't want anyone else to make me as crazy as you do." He kissed her and buried his hands in her hair.

"Do you remember what we were doing at this time last year?" She asked him.

"This time last year I believe I was still at my bachelor party. Scarlett's two exes and Will were both trashed and we managed to pick up JC who was also trashed. It was my bachelor party and I was the only one sober." He laughed.

"I remember that Tandy and Bev got so damn drunk it wasn't funny. That was back when I was still hiding all the alcohol in the house from you." She laughed with him.

"Now you just keep that stash of whiskey in your filin' cabinet that I'm not supposed to know 'bout. We have come a long way in a year. You were so pregnant with those boys that it looked like you were gonna go into labor at any second, but when I saw you walkin' down that aisle towards me you didn't look it at all. You were so damn gorgeous. I was surprised that those two clowns didn't come for another month and a half. Now I don't know what I'd do without 'em. I don't know how I ever lived without wakin' up to the five of you." He left a trail of sweet kisses along her jawline.

"I'm not surprised at all that you know about my whiskey stash you always could sniff it out. I don't know how I ever lived without ya'll either. I'm just glad that I don't ever have to do it again. I was also thinkin' that maybe it's time to start workin' on makin' that other baby we've been talkin' 'bout." She rubbed his chest.

"Right now?" His eyes danced with mirth.

"Right now, baby. You are still in me." She grinned up at him.

"And I'm still hard." He kissed her and started to pump his hips again.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know I held out on the sexy Rayna and Deacon scene until now, but I hope it was worth it. I know that a few of you are mad at Cash and that's the idea, but I promise this time it has a purpose at least. Frankie is going to be different. I have no intentions of ruining anything though I just need you guys to bear with me while I make a few things make sense. Until next time please review.


	86. Chapter 86

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 86

"Come in," Rayna called out from behind her desk. The fact that there was a knock on her door didn't surprise her at all. It was who walked into her office that surprised her.

"Hey, Rayna, I hope I didn't come at a bad time." Luke helped himself to a chair.

"Not at all. What can I do for you, Luke?" Rayna had no clue what could have brought on this visit.

"Well, uh, Rayna, I'm in a little bit of a bind and I'm hopin' that you can help me out." He took his cowboy hat off and sat it on her desk.

"I don't guess we'll know the answer to that unless you tell me what's goin' on." She gave him a smile.

"My money manager was stealin' money from me and now I'm forty million in the hole to the IRS. I sold off a few things and made up the difference, but it's gonna come back to bite me in the ass. I'm sure you heard about the woman that OD'd in one of the hotel suites that were rented out by my tour. All the press has to do was a little bit of diggin' and they found out all 'bout my troubles with the IRS. The sponsors I had lined up for my brand backed out once they heard 'bout it." He started to explain.

"Yeah, I'd heard about that. I also heard that there was a possibility that she was a hooker and that she was with Riff who no one has heard from in days. That sounds like the Riff I remember before he got married and stepped away from the business. I'm not really sure how I can help you out here." She shrugged her shoulders.

"Let's just say that I understand now why Riff walked away from the life. You thought you had your hands full dealin' with Deacon and Vince. Those two were choir boys when compared to Riff. He ain't met a drug or a woman that he wouldn't do. I'm hopin' that you have an artist that can open for me. I know that you have a stable full sittin' 'round doin' nothin' right now. I'll take whoever you can spare. Will or JC would be the best though. If you don't trust me with either of them I'll even take Deacon. We both know that I won't make anythin' on him. He won't take my bullshit and he will tell me to take a piss up a rope if he doesn't like somethin'." Luke bargained with her.

"That's a rough deal. I do know what it's like to work with addicts. Luke, quite frankly I don't know that I can trust you with my artists. I'm not so sure that you and Deacon wouldn't come to blows and he would probably flat out refuse to go out on tour with you. You had your chance with Will and you kicked him off your tour the minute he came out as gay. JC is young and he needs a firm hand that I'm not sure you can provide. The only way I would consider giving you him or Will would be as a package deal. And then I can only loan them to you for so long. I need them here." Rayna replied after thinking it over.

"I'll take whatever I can get. The two of them would be perfect. They fit right in with my image. I know that I fucked up with Will before, but I was scared. You've done wonderful things with him and you've gotten even the more traditional people in this industry on board with him as an artist. I'd like a chance to rectify my earlier mistake. It's time that I make a stand." He didn't want to seem like he was desperate, but that's exactly what he was.

"Understand that if that were to happen both JC and Will would have to agree to it and they would set forth the terms." She leveled with him.

"I can accept that. I have another favor to ask you." He ran his hand across his chin.

"What else is there, Luke?" She asked him.

"Without my sponsors I don't really have the money to keep this label afloat. I thought that since you've been so willin' to work with me that I would give you the first shot at a pretty great artist that I just can't afford now." Luke told her.

"Which artist are we talking about?" Rayna was just a little curious.

"Casey Miller, I know that's a lot of financial responsibility that I'm askin' you to take on, but she could make you a lot of money. I also happen to think that this label would be the best fit for her. I don't wanna drop her and then have the wolves come sniffin' 'round her. I know that you'll take good care of her." He answered.

"What kind of terms are we talking here?" She knew a good deal when she saw one.

"You buy out her contract and I get ten percent of her future album sales. It's enough to keep me goin' until I can pull in some more money from this tour. You'd be gettin' one hell of a deal and you'd be doin' me a favor." He tried to make it sound like something that she couldn't pass up.

"I can make you no promises when it comes to JC and Will joining your tour, but we can work something out where Casey is concerned. I would need to see the projected sales for her album and things like that to know how much to pay you. And this is not my area of expertise this is why I have my sister." She picked up the phone and dialed Tandy's extension. "Hey, come to my office please. And you are so lucky that I have company in here or I would jump all over the situation that I strongly suspect is goin' on in your office. I'll see you in a minute." She hung up.

"Is it a good idea for you and your sister to work together?" Luke looked at her warily.

"No, not at all, but Tandy gets things done. That's usually after we go at each other for 'bout an hour every morning." Rayna replied.

"Rayna, you couldn't have warned me that Luke was the business you wanted to discuss before I came over here from across the building?" Tandy walked into the office.

"I could have, but there would have been no fun in that. Question for you. If we wanted to buy out Casey's contract from Luke would that be an issue?" Rayna asked.

"I would say that that wouldn't be a problem at all. I'm also sure that we could work out a deal where album sales are concerned. We are in the black considering how well Marcus' album is doing and Avery's album is doing very well." Tandy said off the top of her head.

"Why don't you take Luke into your office and discuss terms with him? I have some other business to take care of. I meet up with you after that's finished." Rayna more or less ordered.

"That sounds good to me. Come on to my office with me, Luke. You and I will go over a few things." Tandy smiled at him warmly.

"Lead the way then." Luke smiled back charmingly.

Rayna picked up her phone again after they had left.

* * *

"Will, I'll leave the decision up to you on this one. You know what Wheeler is like. If you don't think we should do this we won't." JC and Will were discussing their newest career opportunity over lunch at the Mile Marker.

"Luke isn't a bad guy to be out on tour with. The only problem I have with him is that he dropped me from his tour when I came out. I think that's Rayna's reasonin' behind havin' him take both of us or neither of us. She wants us both to have someone there that is gonna have our back." Will replied.

"So is this somethin' that we are thinkin' seriously 'bout or are we gonna tell him to stuff it?" JC asked.

"I think this is somethin' we would be stupid to turn down. We both have albums out right now. It's not like this tour is gonna last forever. Before you know it Rayna will have somethin' better lined up for us. It ain't so bad bein' out on tour with him." Will took a drink of his tea.

"Bein' on tour with him ain't really what I'm worried 'bout." JC got a wistful look on his face.

"I know that look. That look has to do with a certain daughter of our boss. Will it be easy to be away from her? Hell no. But will you both be ok? Yeah you will. Mack and I do this, every couple of weeks. He'll have a home stand and then he will go back out on the road. It's not the most pleasant thing in the world, but we make it work. You and Maddie can make it work too." Will knew exactly what that look meant.

"I know that Maddie and I will survive. There's no question 'bout that. I'm more worried 'bout havin' to be 'round Colt if he comes out on tour with his daddy. I get the feelin' that things between the two of us never quite got settled." JC told him.

"Jimmy, you can't get into a fistfight with a seventeen-year-old. You'll be the one to get in trouble for it and it's not worth you losing your spot in the army over." Will cautioned him.

"I'm not gonna start anythin' with him. Trust me, even I know when to control myself. And since when do you call me Jimmy?" JC was a little taken aback to hear him use his given name.

"I guess I don't call you Jimmy all that often. But I used your name because I was tryin' to get through to you. Don't do anythin' stupid. I'm gonna be your baby sitter out on this tour just as much as you're gonna be mine." Will gave him a look.

"I'm not gonna do anythin' stupid, Will. The pranks we play on Gunnar are 'bout as stupid as I get. And that's only cause we know that he won't call the cops on us. Even though he probably should have the mornin' we let the air outta his tires." JC chuckled.

"In our defense we left him an air compressor to air them back up." Will laughed.

"We do absolutely horrible things to him. It's a wonder he ain't hired someone to beat the shit outta us yet." JC shook his head.

"One of these days we are gonna push him to the edge and he's gonna get us back. Until then it's best that we have our fun with him." Will kept laughing.

* * *

Casey knocked on the doorjamb of Rayna's office timidly. "You wanted to see me, Ms. Jaymes?"

Rayna stood up from behind her desk and smiled widely. "Come on in, Casey. And please call me Rayna." She motioned for her to take a seat on the couch. She sat down beside the young woman.

"What is this about, Rayna?" Casey was clearly confused.

"Luke told me that he had a talk with you about not bein' able to keep you on his label anymore. He and I were both thought that you would feel at home here at Highway Sixty-five. With you bein' as young as you are I certainly think it's the best fit for you. No other label head is gonna protect you like I will. As you know I have a daughter that's your age in this business and I'd look out for you the same way I look after her. I was just about your age when I came up in this business and I know what it's like. There is no one that can help you navigate these waters like I can." Rayna made her pitch.

"I'm actually really glad that Luke brought up the subject with you for me. I was gonna make an appointment to see you. Back before I signed with Luke I was courted by the big name labels. They just didn't feel like the right fit and I was hopin' that I could make my new home here." Casey replied.

"That's good, that's really good. Luke and I are in the process of working out what it's going to take for me to buy out your contract from him. You already know everyone here. I think that you've gotten the sense that we operate more like a family and less like a business. One person's success is everyone's success. I like to give my artists the freedom to explore whatever kind of angle they want to within reason. I'm not the kind of label head that is constantly gonna be looking over your shoulder. Another difference between me and Luke is what you make off of merchandising you get to keep. I don't take a chunk of that." Rayna explained to her.

"That all sounds real good. Like I said I'm willin' to come on if you'll have me." Casey kinda shrugged her shoulders not sure what else to say.

"We'll be more than happy to have ya. Just let me get things hammered out with Luke and I'll get a contract for you. Until then why don't you get comfortable around here? I even have someone here to show you around." Rayna waved whoever was standing on the other side of her door in.

"That would be great." Casey agreed.

"I was summoned and here I am." Deacon lumbered into the room an easy smile on his face.

"I was wanting you to show Casey around here. If things go as planned she will be the newest artist at Highway Sixty-five and I wanted you to make her feel at home." Rayna told him.

"I think I can take care of that." Deacon replied.

"Casey, Deacon is the talent scout and sort of an artist mentor slash liaison. If you need anything or you have any questions you can talk to him. Chances are that he will be able to take care of it." Rayna turned to the young woman.

"It's very nice to meet you, Mr. Claybourne." Casey offered Deacon her hand.

"It's nice to meet you too, Casey. Call me Deacon. I ain't never been addressed as Mr. Claybourne and I'm not gonna start now. You're gonna come to think of me as a friend you'll be seein' so much of me." Deacon shook her hand.

"It's such an honor to meet you let alone be workin' with you. JC speaks very highly of you. And you are a legend in this town. Not to mention the record year you just had at the CMAs. I think that I could learn a lot from you." Casey replied.

"Well, I'm humbled to hear that. All I ever wanted was for people to hear my music I never dreamed that it would be this big a deal." Deacon responded.

"Casey, I'm gonna leave you to Deacon and let him get you settled in. I'm gonna go check with Luke and see what kinda progress we are makin' on this deal. With any bit of luck I'll have a contract for you by the end of the day." Rayna smiled at them.

"That sounds good to me." Casey agreed.

"Come on, Casey. I'll take you back to the writer's room. There's always at least one of the gang hangin' out back there. You're in a pretty good age bracket. You fall right between Layla, JC, and Maddie. So there are a few people for you to talk to." Deacon gestured for her to follow him.

"I already know JC." Casey replied.

"Good then that saves me from havin' to explain to you how taken JC and Maddie are with each other. You already know exactly what I'm talkin' 'bout." Deacon led her back to the writer's room. "Look at that, you got lucky. Not only are the Exes here so is Juliette. I think ya'll know each other."

"Yeah, I've met them all before." Casey confirmed.

"Now, I know that I'm supposed to be showin' you 'round, but would you rather get a borin' tour or would you rather do some writin' with them?" Deacon asked her.

"I think you know the answer to that." Casey chuckled.

"You should pick us over the ten cent tour he's supposed to give you. We are a lot more interestin'." Juliette chimed in. She'd taken an instant liking to the young woman. That was rare for her.

"Don't pay any mind to Juliette she's a little bit more important in her own mind than she is in real life." Scarlett laughed.

"I'm gonna go shut myself up in Deacon's office where only the truly brave souls go if ya'll are gonna start." Gunnar had it bad enough being friends with Will and JC. He didn't want to get in the middle of anything his wife and Juliette were in to.

"Casey, you'll have to forgive my husband he has the manners of someone who was born in a barn sometimes. Not to mention he makes things more awkward than they need to be. That's the reason everyone picks on him." Scarlett rolled her eyes.

"I won't pay no mind to him. Trust me I know when to let things go over my head." Casey took a seat.

"Is Catydid in my office?" Deacon addressed Juliette.

"No, Emily and Rusty took her and the boys for a walk." Juliette replied. "And the reason that no one wants to go into Deacon's office is because that's where the babies hang out." she added for Casey's sake.

"I'll be sure to steer clear then." Casey laughed.

"Casey, do you mind hangin' out with them for a little while? I need to go return a phone call." Deacon asked the young woman.

"Not at all." Casey assured him.

"Ya'll make her feel welcome and don't be your usual selves. Though I don't have to worry too much the two trouble makers aren't here. I'll be back in just a minute." Deacon excused himself to return the phone he'd gotten from Harley Davidson. He figured they probably just wanted him to do another PSA for them. He wouldn't know until he returned the call though.

* * *

"You ok, Maddie? You seem like you've been in a different world today?" Cash put her guitar back into the case.

"I'm fine. It's nothing bad. JC is going to go out on tour with Luke for a few stops and I'm really excited for him. I'm really gonna miss him though." Maddie admitted.

"It'll be good for you to have a little bit of space from him for a little while. You two are practically married. I don't know how either of you ever have any fun you're both always too worried about what the other one is doing. You're way too young for that. Relax and have some fun." Cash laughed at her.

"We know how to have fun without each other. We aren't that attached. I trust him and he trusts me. He was my first and we have this really deep connection. Don't laugh it's not funny." Maddie blushed.

"It's great that you got one of the good ones. You can trust him to go out on tour and not cheat on you. You'd be surprised how often that happens. With you both being musicians you understand the kind of strain that that puts on a relationship. I've had friends that have had kind of a prison agreement for when they go out on the road separately." Cash informed her.

Maddie looked at her curiously. "Prison agreement? What's that?"

Cash threw her head back and laughed. "I forget sometimes that you're so young. You've never heard that it doesn't count as cheating as long as the other person is in prison?"

Maddie continued to look at her blankly.

"What that means is as long as they are in the same town they are completely faithful to each other. If they are gonna be separated for any significant amount of time then they have permission to sleep with other people. And then there are some people that live by what happens on the road stays there." Cash explained to her.

"I didn't know that." Maddie tried to hide her panic.

"You don't have anything to worry about if he's as crazy about you as he acts like he is." Cash reassured her.

"I know that. Like I said I trust him completely." Maddie willed down the tinge of doubt that had crept into her mind.

"I need to get going." Cash told her.

"I'll walk you out." Maddie offered.

"Hey, Cash, I'm not surprised to see you here. You've been spendin' a bunch of time here lately." Deacon and Rayna had just come in with the boys.

"What can I say? I found a great writing partner." Cash smiled. "I'll see ya'll later."

"See you later, Cash." Maddie waved to her.

"Where's your sister?" Rayna asked her.

"She's in her room doing homework. I already finished mine. Is it ok if I go see JC for a little while? I promise that I'll be home before curfew." Maddie needed to see her boyfriend.

"I don't have a problem with it. It's a school night just get home early." Rayna replied.

"I will I promise." Maddie grabbed her keys and her coat before she headed out to the garage.

Deacon took the boys out of their car seats and laid them on the living room floor. "I think we've officially lost that one to her friends and her boyfriend."

"She ain't gonna go anywhere on us any time soon. We pay for everything." Rayna assured him.

"You and I need to have a talk." Deacon thought that this was something better to get out of the way now.

"What about?" Rayna eyed him warily.

"I had a very interesting conversation with the people at Harley today. Given the success of the PSA I did for them last year. They want me to be a spokesman and they want to sponsor a tour with me as a headliner. I know that would cut down a lot of costs for the label." Deacon rushed the words out of his mouth.

"Babe, that is great. I am so proud of you. What did you tell them?" Rayna threw her arms around his neck.

"I told them that I needed to discuss it with my wife and my label head first before I could give them an answer. They told me to take all the time I needed." Deacon replied.

"I think that as your wife I would miss you terribly, but it's something I could live with. As your label head I would be extremely pissed off if you turned that offer down." Rayna put both her hands on his shoulders.

"I couldn't leave you alone with the kids and expect you to do it all. We've talked 'bout this and it's not part of the plan. I'm happy with things the way that they are." Deacon shook his head.

"Deacon, you're takin' this tour. Babe, you stood by my side on that stage for years. It is your turn now. If I have to go on the back burner for a little while, while you get your time in the spotlight then so be it. I want this for you. I want the world to see the amazin' man that I married. And I want you to have what I stood in the way of you gettin' years ago." Rayna stared into his eyes and spoke firmly.

"I don't know if I can leave the kids for that long. It may be hard for you to believe this, but I got settled down here and got real used to bein' a daddy." Deacon admitted to her.

"It's not hard to believe at all, darlin'. I see first-hand what an amazin' daddy you are. I think we could work somethin' out where you don't have to go that long without seein' your babies. I don't think any of you could take being apart for a long time. I know I couldn't stand to be away from you for more than a few days without going crazy. Babe, take the tour and we will work somethin' out. With me getting in the studio to do this new album it might be good if I took on some kind of tour. We can figure it out together. All you have to do is say yes." Rayna spoke passionately.

She would hate to see him pass up yet another opportunity because of her. She'd held him back enough. Now it was his turn to shine.

"Ok, I'll call 'em back and tell 'em that I'm their man." Deacon agreed. He couldn't fight her when she got like that. Despite the resistance he'd put up he was excited at the prospect of getting to headline his own tour.

"No, darlin', you're my man. I'm only lettin' them borrow you for a little while." Rayna kissed him and grinned against his lips.

"I can't think of a thing I rather be." Deacon replied.

"Deacon John Claybourne Junior, no, you don't do that to Elvis." Rayna looked over Deacon's shoulder to see the boy in question with the dog in a headlock. She walked over and picked him up.

"Aw, momma, he didn't mean anythin' by it. He was tryin' to love on Elvis." Deacon defended his son.

"Yeah, Deacon, he was trying to love on him with his arms around his throat." Rayna rolled her eyes at him.

"He was huggin' him, baby. Elvis lets him do it. He wasn't tryin' to be mean." Deacon corrected her.

"Then which one of them is it that the dog is afraid of?" Rayna asked him.

"Jayme he's scared of Jayme. He likes to pull his ears. I'm not so sure that little booger isn't doin' it to be mean." Deacon chuckled.

"Deacon John, don't laugh at them when they are being bad it encourages bad behavior." Rayna scolded him. There was no real heat behind her words though.

* * *

"Is there somethin' on your mind, baby? You seem like you're someplace else." JC smoothed Maddie's hair back from her face and kissed her forehead. They were lying naked in his bed in each other's arms.

"JC, do you know what a prison agreement is?" Maddie's eyes looked troubled.

"It doesn't count as cheatin' if the other person is in prison. Is that what you're talkin' 'bout?" JC knew right away what she meant.

"That's exactly what I'm talking about. Cash was telling me that a bunch of her artist friends do things like that when they go out on the road. Or that some of them just live by what happens on the road stays on the road." Maddie lifted her head from his chest.

"Maddie, that ain't me at all. If you think it is then you don't know me. I would never think of doin' anythin' like that to you. You're the only girl for me. Cash needs to keep her mouth shut, 'bout things she don't know 'bout." JC rubbed her back.

"I don't want you to feel like you're chained down by me or anythin' like that." Maddie replied.

"That's the last thing you ever have to worry 'bout. I don't feel chained down by you. You make me incredibly happy. I ain't throw that away just to get me a piece of ass while I'm on the road. I could screw anyone. You're the only person that I can make love to." JC tried to talk some sense into her.

"I know that you're still a guy even though we are together. You're gonna look and get tempted." Maddie pointed out reasonably.

JC put both his hands on her cheeks. "Listen up, Cricket, I can barely handle you. I don't need any other woman in the mix to complicate the situation. You are my beautiful handful. I don't want anyone else. I don't even notice other women anymore. You are the only woman that matters to me." He pressed a tender kiss to her lips.

Maddie slapped his chest playfully. "Hey, now, I'm not as difficult as you're acting like I am."

JC laughed heartily. "I wouldn't have you any other way." He grabbed her wrists and kissed both of them.

"Good, because you're not gonna get me any other way." Maddie climbed on top of him and straddled his hips. She planted a long lingering kiss on his lips.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. For those of you who keep asking. I do intend to finish This Time Around I just am working on getting this story done for right now and I have to figure out where I want to go with the other story, but I haven't given up on it. Until next time please review.


	87. Chapter 87

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 87

"Deacon, babe, you're bein' picky." Rayna turned in her chair to give her husband a look. They were holding auditions to get him a permanent band and backup singers for this tour. They had rented a space at Sound Check for that purpose.

"I am not bein' picky. I need a good backup guitarist and so far all I've heard are guitar players." Deacon replied.

"Just pick a guitar player. You're not gonna find anyone as good as you are and you know it." Rayna rolled her eyes at him.

"You're one to talk. How many lead guitarists have you gone through since you fired me?" Deacon arched his eyebrow.

"That's different. Once you've had the best it's a little hard to settle for less than that. Plus, you know me. You know what I like and how I want things done. I've yet to find another guitar player that can please me the way you do in the professional sense." Rayna looked around and then purred in his ear. "In the personal sense which I'm sure is how you thought I meant that last comment. I know that you're the only one who can get the job done."

Deacon reached over and squeezed her knee. "Behave yourself, baby."

"Ray, Deacon, are you two ready for another backup singer now?" Bucky asked them. He had to fight the urge to roll his eyes. If they were left alone for any amount of time they were going to have their hands on each other.

"Yeah, send another one in. We only have one more spot to fill. This shouldn't be a big deal." Deacon answered him.

Bucky waved for Rusty to send someone else in.

"Well, hey, Deacon, I didn't know this audition was for your band." Pam grinned at him.

Deacon looked up shocked. He'd thought he'd seen the last of Pam that morning he left her in his hotel room. "Pam, it's good to see you."

"Deacon, aren't you gonna introduce me?" Rayna looked between him and the blonde.

"Rayna, this is Pam York. We met on Luke's tour. She was one of his backup singers." Deacon explained quickly. "Pam, this is my wife, Rayna."

"It's nice to meet you, Pam. I can't say that Deacon has ever mentioned you." Rayna plastered a fake smile on her face.

"I can't say that he never mentioned you. You're all he ever talks about." Pam smiled genuinely.

"Pam, I know what you're capable of there's really no point in havin' you audition for me." Deacon shifted in his chair uncomfortably.

Rayna gave him a look that asked him if he'd slept with Pam.

Deacon barely shook his head no.

Rayna nodded her head in response to that. She had to trust him. He'd never given her any reason to doubt his commitment to her.

"I'm just gonna go ahead and give you that last spot as my backup singer." Deacon said finally.

"That sounds good to me." Pam replied.

"If you go on with Bucky he will get you all squared away." Rayna spoke up.

"I've got a contract here and a few more documents that need your signature." Bucky held up a stack of papers.

"Just lead the way then." Pam followed Bucky out of the room.

"Deacon, what the fuck was that?" Rayna arched her eyebrow at her husband.

"That was nothin'. Pam was just a friend. I needed one of those at the time. Nothin' happened between us. I was so damn determined that I was gonna get you back that the thought never crossed my mind. I never gave her another thought once I was off the tour." Deacon assured her.

"If it was nothing why didn't you ever mention it?" Rayna asked him.

"Because things happened so quickly between us after that. The last year has been a whirlwind. We haven't had time to come up for air. You know that you're the only woman in this world for me. Jealous isn't your color, babe. You don't have anythin' to be jealous of." Deacon promised.

"Call me crazy, but I believe you. I know how hard you worked to get your ring on my finger. I have no reason at all to doubt you." Rayna crawled into his lap and kissed him.

"Oh boy, I'll tell ya'll what. Some things never change. The first time I met ya'll you were suckin' face. In all the years I've known ya you ain't never changed." Max walked in carrying his guitar.

"Mad Max, what are you doin' here, brother?" Deacon asked him with a curious look on his face.

"Max, watch your damn mouth before I call your wife and tell her that you're bein' a pain in the ass." Rayna got up and hugged him.

"It's damn good to see you, Ray. I'm even gonna pretend like I didn't hear what you just said 'bout callin' Hailey. She knows that I'm here." Max hugged her back. "Freakin' Deacon, I think it should be obvious." He pointed at his guitar case.

"Max, I wish you would have gotten here a little sooner. I already hired a bass player." Deacon told him.

"I guess it's a damn good thing that I ain't here to audition for bass. You seem to forget that I'm the guy that used to step in when you were too plastered to play. Hell, I stepped in when backup guitar was too plastered to play. Rayna's band was filled with a bunch of drunks." Max quipped.

"You're hired. And you're not just backup guitar. You're the band leader. I mean I know that's kinda technically my title cause I play all my own guitar, but you know what I mean." Deacon hired him on the spot.

"Deacon, are you sure?" Max was a little floored. He hadn't expected to get the job that easily.

"Man, I'm more than sure. Not only do I know that you know your stuff, but we go back a long way. How the hell did you talk Hailey into lettin' you do this?" Deacon replied.

"She told me to see if I could even get the job. She said that if I did we would figure somethin' out." Max answered him.

"If I were you I'd get on the phone to her and tell her that it's time to start gettin' things figured out." Deacon laughed.

"Does this band have a name or is it just the Deacon Claybourne Band?" Max laughed with him.

"Seein' that you're in the roster I think we can go old school. Deacon Claybourne and Rebel Moon. You remember that was the name of the band Vince and I had before we joined up with Ray." Deacon grinned at him.

"No, nope, no way in hell. I refuse to let this happen. Ray, tell me that I'm not seeing what I think I'm seeing." Bucky walked back into the room with a groan.

"Buck, as much as I would like to I can't do that. We could be here for weeks if he doesn't have Max play guitar for him. I think we can trust them to behave themselves. The instigator is waitin' at the pearly gates for 'em anyway. They are both grownups now and I sincerely doubt that they can be that bad without Vince to lead them astray." Rayna actually felt bad for what they put her poor manager through sometimes.

"Hailey likes to say that Vinny is waitin' up at the pearly gates for Deacon with a case of beer. And if I'm lucky maybe they will save me some. Come to think of it Hailey is a little mean to me when she wants to be." Max made a face.

"I think it's safe to say that we are done here. I'm almost tempted to say we don't even have to bother givin' him a contract you could pay him in beer and he would be ok with that. Hailey on the other hand may have a problem with it." Rayna laughed at him.

"Hailey would have a huge problem with it if I got paid in beer. My wife likes havin' nice things. Of course she also said that I'm the reason why we can't have nice things. Like I said she's not all that nice to me." Max shrugged his shoulders.

"Max, I'm gonna regret this, but I have a contract for you to sign. Yours is different the rest of the band's. I'm gonna assume that he has you on lead guitar or whatever the hell he wants to call it." Bucky sighed. He was resigned to his fate.

"Cheer up, Buck. Look on the bright side at least you ain't gotta be out on the road with us." Max clapped him on the back.

"Deacon John, just so you know. You just got something I don't think you should have." Rayna informed him.

"I'm aware, Ray. If it makes you feel any better I'm not even sure that it's a good idea that we be let loose on civilization together. If you're worried 'bout me fallin' off the wagon you ain't gotta. I don't wanna drink bad enough to lose everythin' that matters most to me in the world." Deacon reassured her.

"Deacon, that is the least of my worries. Max is kinda the Gunnar of our group. I'm more worried 'bout you leavin' him at a tour stop and makin' him find his own way home." Rayna wrapped her arm around his waist.

"I can only promise that we won't leave him without airfare if we do somethin' like that to him." Deacon chuckled.

"I guess that's all I can ask for then." Rayna shook her head. As excited as she was for him having this tour, she was also going to miss him like crazy. That was why she currently had something in the works. She didn't want to be separated from him all that long if she could do something about it.

* * *

"Hey, woman, what are you doin' givin' my usual slot away?" Frankie consulted the list of performers for the week.

"I gave my slot away too. It's for a Highway Sixty-five event. We can play anytime, but those events are really good for the bar and Deacon tries not to do it that often and if he does he always gives me as much warnin' as he can. The reason I don't mind it all that much is it gets a bunch of the industry bigwigs to come in here even when there isn't anythin' goin' on. Those are the nights that we play. Understand now?" Beverly spoke to him like he was slow.

"Beverly, why must you be so mean and hateful to me all the time?" Frankie asked her.

"I wouldn't do it if you didn't make yourself such an easy target." Beverly winked at him.

"I was thinkin' that those duets that we've been doin' lately aren't the only way that we could be good together." Frankie put his hand on top of hers.

"Frankie…" Beverly started to protest.

"Bev, just hear me out before you say no. I ain't askin' you to move in with me and I ain't askin' you to marry me. I'm askin' ya out for coffee. I'd say lunch, but I'm pretty sure you'd get spooked and turn me down flat. I'm a recoverin' alcoholic I know all the best coffee spots in the city." Frankie flashed her a charming grin.

"It's been so long since I've even been on somethin' that resembles a date. The last one was before I got married. And he ran off when I got pregnant. So it's been a good long while for me. I don't have much luck with men. My daddy was abusive and my husband abandoned me and our child. I'm a mess on a good day and I ain't no good at relationships." Beverly warned him.

"I ain't askin' for a relationship. I'm just wantin' a cup of coffee with ya. If that cup of coffee works out alright then I'll want lunch with ya. At this point it has nothin' to do with bein' a date and everythin' to do with me wantin' to get my stomach full in the company of a lovely lady such as yourself." Frankie laid it on thick.

"I can agree to a cup of coffee if you can agree to keep your hands to yourself." Beverly pulled her hand out from underneath his.

"I can live with that." Frankie nodded his head.

"And if you agree to keep your damn cheesy pickup lines to yourself." Beverly added.

"That I can't promise you." Frankie laughed.

"Well, one out of two ain't bad. I think I can live with that." Beverly said after giving it some thought.

"It's not the enthusiasm that I was hopin' for, but I'll take it. It'll come in time when you realize that I ain't as bad as you seem to think I am. I ain't like your daddy or your ex-husband." Frankie of course had to tempt fate and he squeezed her hand again.

This time Beverly didn't pull away she let him do it. She looked into his eyes while he looked into hers. "Frankie, I agreed to coffee, get back to work."

The grin that had started to form on Frankie's face faltered. Just like that she had cut his legs out from under him and taken the wind out of his sails. "Damn, woman, you're cold, but I'm gonna thaw you out yet."

* * *

"So, I heard that Deacon finally got a band together this morning." Tandy commented to her sister.

"Yeah, he's got a band finally. I didn't think he was ever gonna find a guitar player to meet his standards. Thankfully Max walked in when he did and he took care of that problem." Rayna took a sip of her tea. She and her sister were having a meeting over lunch.

"That's good not only is this thing with Harley going to be good for him it's going to be good for the label." Tandy replied.

"I know that I'm just gonna miss him. Even when we weren't together we were together out on the road. With the exception of that tour I went on while I was with Luke." Rayna mused.

"This is you and him. I know that you have something in the works that's gonna cause me a huge headache." Tandy rolled her eyes.

"It won't cause you a headache it will cause Bucky a headache. Harley has basically given Deacon license to do whatever he wants to do as long as he goes out on tour. I was thinking that I could arrange a tour around his that wouldn't keep out of town away from the kids for that long. We could be together and the girls could join us on the weekends." Rayna already had it all planned out.

"I should have known that was coming. You two have a problem when it comes to each other." Tandy shook her head.

"I love him. I'm not gonna apologize for that. You are just as crazy about Bucky even though you're mean to him." Rayna smirked at her.

"Let's just get to the real reason that we're here." Tandy opened her planner.

"Let's get this done." Rayna agreed.

"This is your sons' first birthday party don't act like we are planning a funeral." Tandy dug a pen out of her purse.

"It's not that. It's just that any choices we make I have to run past Deacon. Let's just say anything too flamboyant and he will never go for it." Rayna replied.

"I think that we can come up with something that even he will agree with. For starters they need the perfect outfits." Tandy went on.

"Well, they are identical twins, but they have drastically different personalities. We need something that is gonna represent that. I could put Jayme in a classic preppy outfit and that would suit him perfectly. Deac on the other hand would fuss and not be happy. That boy is at his happiest when I strip him down to just his onesie and diaper and let him crawl through the house." Rayna had given it a lot of thought.

"We will just have to go shopping and see what we can find. Now for a theme." Tandy wouldn't be deterred from her mission.

"Surprisingly Deacon found the cutest little western theme. I really liked it. We can keep looking though. This is much harder for boys than it was for the girls." Rayna sighed.

"I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that the guest list consists of the usual suspects." Tandy made a note.

"That sounds about right to me. Don't forget to invite Watty. And I will have to ask Deacon if he wants to invite Paul. That's like pulling teeth. In the end he always ends up caving. I don't blame him for feeling the way he does, but he also wants to be the good guy." Rayna told her.

"I've got it don't worry. Do you trust daddy and Watty to behave?" Tandy asked her.

"We won't have to worry about that. They will just avoid each other. While I'm thinking about it remember to invite Cole, Audrey, and the girls. Daddy would insist on it anyway." Rayna added.

"I'm on it. We also need to order the boys both their own cake so they can smash it. That seems like something that they both would enjoy." Tandy chuckled.

"That's the understatement of the year. Those two both love making a mess. I have to pick the poor dog's water up off the floor while they are crawling around or they get into it. Deac doesn't leave Elvis alone. He's right there by him while he's trying to eat. That's how I know that dog is gentle. He lets him do whatever he wants to him while he's eating and he never snaps at him." Rayna rambled a little bit.

"Ok, I think we have a plan. We can go shopping after lunch." Tandy smiled at her.

"That sounds perfect to me." Rayna agreed with her.

* * *

"You wanted to see me, Deacon?" Avery leaned against the doorjamb to Deacon's office.

"I sure did come on in." Deacon waved him in with a big smile on his face.

"What's up?" Avery took a seat.

"Well, as you know your new album is doing extremely well. We need to strike while the iron is hot. So, my question to you is this. How'd you like to go out on the road with me?" Deacon asked him.

"Are you serious right now? Deacon, it never even crossed my mind that you'd ask me. I figured that you'd take Sadie or Will or JC after they get off tour with Luke." Avery couldn't quite believe what he was hearing.

"I'm dead serious, Avery. Will and Jimmy may join us once they are off the road with Luke. I need an opener and you need to get out and promote your album. We can help each other out here. What do you say?" Deacon asked him.

"I say count me in." Avery didn't hesitate to say yes.

"I think we have a pretty good line up then. Casey, you, and me. It's gonna be a good time out there." Deacon reached across his desk and shook the younger man's hand.

"Absolutely. I'm looking forward to it." Avery agreed.

"Great. I thought that Casey would be a good fit with us. That girl has some chops." Deacon replied.

"That she does. And it's perfect because you can help her navigate the landscape of the industry." Avery agreed with him.

"How do you think Juliette is gonna take this?" Deacon asked him.

"Juliette is gonna be fine with it. She's hell bent on repairing her reputation. Casey is just another person that she can work with to earn some good will." Avery shrugged his shoulders.

"It's always good for her to have a project. I know what she can get like when she has too much time on her hands." Deacon laughed a little.

"You and me both. I wish she would get a tour together and go out for a little while. It would at least give her something to do. I'd just bring Cadence out with me because I know that I would have more time to deal with her than Juliette would." Avery retorted.

"I think that just may happen. I can't swear to it, but I'm pretty positive that Ray has somethin' up her sleeve. I don't put nothin' past that woman. I know that she's been feelin' too much like a label head and not enough like an artist lately. Between the two of them there is no tellin' what they will come up with." Deacon just shook his head. There were some things he was just better off not knowing about before they happened.

* * *

"Rayna, what am I doin' here?" Juliette laid out across the couch in Rayna's office. Truthfully she was bored out of her mind.

"I think I'm doing a public service by bringing you in here and giving you something to do. I know that you've been a bit at loose ends lately and I thought that I would help you out with that." Rayna leaned up against the edge of her desk.

"Do you have another artist that I can write with?" Juliette perked up a little bit.

"I can do you one better than that." Rayna hid a smirk.

"What do you mean by that? Don't toy with my emotions here, Rayna." Juliette said dramatically.

"Good lord, girl, you're 'bout as dramatic as my teenager. That makes sense you ain't much older than she is. Juliette, I'm gettin' a tour together and I thought that you would like to be a part of it." Rayna chuckled at her.

"I don't care what it entails or the size of it. Count me in." Juliette sat up on the couch.

"I had a feelin' that would be your reaction. You gonna be ok with opening for me?" Rayna asked her.

"With as thankful as I am to have a tour to be on I'd be ok with openin' for Maddie and Daphne. Hell, I'm so desperate that I'd open for Beverly." Juliette would agree to anything at this point.

"Beverly wouldn't let you. You might steal some of her thunder. Believe it or not my sister-in-law is an even bigger diva than you are. I shouldn't say things like that we have been gettin' along well lately. Anyway I thought that you, Sadie, and me would be a good ticket for this tour." Rayna told her.

"I'm not even gonna argue with you on that one. I however am gonna thank you for not makin' me have to deal with Layla." Juliette was grateful for the fact that she didn't have to tour with Layla again. She was the cause of a lot of her problems.

"Don't you worry. I'm gonna find somethin' else for Layla and the Exes to do. Deacon is taking Casey out on tour with him. I don't know if you heard, but Harley is sponsoring his whole tour. I'm gonna link up our tour so I'm never away from him for longer than a day. Bucky is gonna handle the scheduling, but it's gonna be staggered so that one of us plays a city one night and the other plays the next night. Whoever played the first night will have a travel day the next night and that way we will be in the same city." Rayna explained to her. She had finally figured out how she was going to make things work.

"Rayna, for once in my life I'm not even gonna argue with you about it. The only thing that matters to me is that I'm about to make my comeback. This time nothin' is gonna get me derailed." Juliette had a fire in her eyes.

"Whatever you say, Juliette. I ain't gonna argue with you 'bout it. We should be rollin' out soon. It'll depend on how quickly Buck can get things worked out. I think our schedule is gonna be somethin' like three weeks on the road then a week home. I don't know exactly how that's gonna work yet. I just know that it's gonna work out well for everyone." Rayna replied.

* * *

Maddie and Daphne sat on the couch their eyes were on their parents who stood in front of them.

"I guess I'll ask what this is about." Maddie quipped.

"Your daddy and I are both gettin' ready to go out on tour. Of course we will have you girls join us a lot, but you have school and we would rather you be in class than have a tutor." Rayna began.

"If you're both gonna be on the road who are we gonna stay with?" Daphne asked.

"Well, ya'll have options. Mawmaw, pawpaw, Aunt Tandy, and Scarlett have all said that you can stay with them if you want to. Mawmaw offered to come here and stay with ya'll. Pawpaw said if you go stay with him he will let each of you fix up a room for yourself anyway you want it. Aunt Tandy and Uncle Bucky ain't opposed to stayin' here with ya'll. Scarlett and Gunnar are Scarlett and Gunnar I'm sure she'd like a little company other than him sometimes." Deacon explained to her.

"There's another option. Guess who called me today." Rayna smiled at them.

"I don't know who?" Maddie rolled her eyes. She wasn't in the mood for her mom's guessing games.

"Uncle Rhett they are done with their exercises and he's free for a little while. He offered to come stay with ya'll. When his season starts up you'll still be in school, but most of his games during that time are home games. And it's not like you don't have other people to stay with. I think he's gonna come stay here either way so there is someone at the house." Rayna answered.

"We will let ya'll think 'bout it. You don't have to make a decision right this minute. And I'm sure that ya'll will bounce 'round a little bit anyway." Deacon added.

"What about the boys? Where are they gonna be?" Daphne asked.

"Since the boys are so little and they don't have school they will be out on the road with us most of the time. But, if ya'll get to missin' your baby brothers I'm sure that we can come up with somethin'. They are just too little to be away from us for too long right now. A week here and there wouldn't hurt though. I know that your mawmaw and your pawpaw will probably insist on it. You know how crazy those two are about you four." Rayna answered that question.

"I'm not going to stay with pawpaw. That man is way too strict. I may just stay here with Rhett or with Scarlett and Gunnar." Maddie crossed her arms over her chest.

"I know he's my daddy. I lived with him until I didn't." Rayna was always careful not to say anything bad about her father in front of her kids because they loved him so much.

"Come on now, ya'll, we don't have to figure it out right now. I know that it's gonna be hard on us all to be separated, but you know what happens durin' the summer. That's when we tour together and go places as a family. I know ya'll have to be excited 'bout that. Maddie, this will be your first tour since your CMA win. You've got songs on the chart it'll be good for you. Your solo album and you and Daphne's album will be out soon." Deacon tried to tempt her.

"Ok, ok, I give." Maddie actually cracked a smile.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know things have started to move a little quicker and that's because I want to get this story done so we can start on the new one before the new season starts. Don't worry though we still have more ground to cover with this one. Anyway until next time please review.


	88. Chapter 88

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is Damn Good Friends by Tyler Farr and Jason Aldean.

* * *

Chapter 88

"I wanna thank ya'll for havin' me tonight. As you know I've suffered some setbacks lately and it's good to know that I still have you in my corner." Luke was on stage at the Mile Marker. He was making the announcement that he was adding Will and JC to his tour. "I've gotta thank Deacon for lettin' me take over his stage for the night. And I'd like to introduce ya'll to a couple damn good friends of mine. Ya'll put your hands together for Mr. Will Lexington and Mr. JC Grayson."

Will and JC came out on stage carrying their guitars.

"These are the two newest artists on my tour." Luke announced. He turned to the two young men. "What do you boys say we hit 'em with that new song?"

"I'm in." JC put the strap of his guitar over his shoulder.

"Count me in too." Will tipped his cowboy hat.

They all started to play their guitars.

" _You're drivin' back home down two forty-six you almost hit a deer and you end up in a ditch. You can't pull forward and you can't back out. You sit there thinkin' what you gonna do now? You'd be a little nervous if the cops showed up cause you drank a little maybe just a little too much. Waitin' on a tow truck takes too long. It's two in the mornin' who you gonna call?"_ Luke started the song.

" _Friends damn good friends. Seven minutes later they're pullin' you out. You know the ones I'm talkin' 'bout. Friends damn good friends. You can count 'em all on one of your hands. You got a hundred buddies, but a couple of damn good friends."_ The three men sang in unison.

" _So you're all shootin' pool on a Saturday night. This little brunette keeps givin' you the eye. So you buy her a drink and before too long you're out on the floor in the middle of a song. About that time her ex shows up. He's starin' you down gettin' all bowed up. He's a big ol' jacked up S.O.B. That's alright he's about meet your."_ JC took the next verse.

" _Friends damn good friends. A few seconds later he's startin' to see it ain't one on one it's one on three. Friends damn good friends. They do it for you cause you'd do it for them. You got a hundred buddies, but a couple of damn good friends."_

" _They're there even when you don't see 'em as much cause you moved away or you fell in love. But they're wearin' a tux when you're sayin' your vows. And if you crash and burn you can crash on their couch."_ Will belted out.

" _Friends damn good friends. They love you like a brother there ain't no doubt. You know the ones I'm talkin' about. Friends damn good friends. You can count 'em all on one of your hands. You got a hundred buddies, but a couple of damn good friends. Oh, damn good friends."_ They finished the song in unison.

"That's just a little taste of what's to come out on tour with these two boys. Ya'll give it up for them one more time." Luke got the crowd going again.

"Tell me again that we did the right thing trustin' him with them." Deacon commented to Rayna.

"We did the right thing. He's really not a bad guy and you know that. Besides that, Jimmy and Will have each other's backs. Also from a business standpoint it was the right call. Lettin' those two go out on tour with them saved us a lot of money when it came to gettin' Casey's contract." Rayna replied.

"When you say things like that you remind me of your father." Deacon just looked at her like she was crazy.

"You know as well as I do that I'm gonna be checking up on them constantly. Mostly to make sure that they are behaving themselves. I really don't have to tell you what they are like when they get together. The only thing I got from daddy was his ambition." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

Deacon put his hands up in a sign of surrender. "Babe, you take good care of all your artists. I don't doubt for a second that you'll keep a close eye on them."

"I'm more concerned with our daughter goin' off the deep end because she can't see her boyfriend every day." Rayna was not looking forward to dealing with a mopey teenager.

"I promise you that she will think up ways to see him." Deacon knew that as sure as he knew his own name.

"I don't doubt that either. It's a good thing that she has Cash around to keep her company." Rayna replied.

"Yeah, she's a little bit easier to deal with when she has someone else to talk to." Deacon agreed with her.

* * *

The next morning Luke's tour rolled out of Nashville. Rayna of course had to take Maddie down to the buses to say bye to JC.

"Will, if you need anything while you're out on the road don't hesitate to call. If you can't get ahold of me or Deacon call Bucky he will know how to get in touch with us. If anything happens that concerns you or that you don't like I want to hear about it and I will talk to Luke." Rayna told him.

"I know, Rayna. I'm sure that everythin' will be fine. But if anythin' happens I will call you." Will assured her.

"Keep a close eye on him will you?" Rayna inclined her head over to where JC stood with Maddie.

"I've got my eye on him. Don't worry 'bout him he will be just fine. He's gonna miss Maddie like crazy and I'm gonna have to deal with that." Will laughed a little bit.

"And she's gonna miss him just as much. I'll pray for you and you can pray for me." Rayna teased.

"I know that this is gonna be hard, but I promise I will call you every day. And we will work out somethin' where we can see each other. I'll be back in town for the boys' birthday party. This time is gonna fly by." JC held both of Maddie's hands in his.

"I'm gonna miss you so much, babe. We've been together almost every day since we started dating and I don't know how to act without you around." Maddie's eyes swam with tears.

"I have somethin' for you." JC took a t-shirt out of his shoulder bag. "Here you can wear this to sleep in. I put it on after I got out of the shower and wore it for a little while. It smells like me. I also have this for you." He took a ball chain with his dog tags off of his neck and put it around hers.

Maddie ran her fingers over his dog tags. "You are the best boyfriend ever. You know that don't you?"

"Havin' you for a girlfriend makes it easy. I only wanna make you happy." JC replied.

"I love you so much." Maddie wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his chest.

"I love you too, Cricket." JC kissed the top of her head. He then tilted her face up to him and kissed her lips.

"JC, finish tellin' that girl bye so we can go. We don't wanna be late." Will called trying to get JC moving.

"Maddie, come on, girl. I gotta get you to school." Rayna rushed her daughter.

JC rested his forehead against Maddie's and laughed. "I gotta go, Cricket. I will call you later. I love you."

"I love you too, babe." Maddie kissed him one last time and pulled away from him.

JC picked up his bag and his guitar case and climb up on the bus.

"Don't worry 'bout him, Maddie. I'll take care of him and make sure that he stays in line." Will gave her a quick hug.

"I know, Will. I'm more worried about who is gonna keep an eye on you." Maddie hugged him back before he got on the bus.

"How you doin', baby girl?" Rayna wrapped her arm around Maddie's shoulders.

"I'll be ok, I just didn't know that it would be this hard." Maddie leaned into her mother's side.

"It's one of the hardest things ever. It doesn't ever get any easier, but it does make you more thankful for the time that you do get together." Rayna kissed her head. "Come on, we have to go get Daph and get you both to school. The best thing for you right now is to be around your friends that way you don't have too much time to think 'bout things."

"I guess you're right. Anything is better than being alone with all the crazy thoughts I have in my head right now." Maddie agreed reluctantly.

* * *

After getting the girls off to school Rayna came home to find Deacon passed out in bed with both the boys. Little Deacon slept just as lightly as his father did so his eyes popped open the minute she walked in.

"Hi, handsome man, it looks like you and your brother got some good bonding time in with daddy while momma took your sissies to school. Daddy must have had a sleepless night last night or ya'll wouldn't have been nappin'." Rayna got into bed and pulled her son to her.

"Hi, momma." Little Deacon squealed.

"You are gettin' way too big on me already, little boy. How was your time with daddy today? Did you enjoy it?" Rayna found herself having these one sided conversations with the twins all of the time.

Little Deacon babbled something unintelligible and tapped on her chest.

"Come here, Bubba, momma knows what that means. You can't be hungry you just wanna nurse without your brother in the way." Rayna sat propped up against the headboard. She pulled her shirt up and took her son into her arms. "Now, go for it."

Little Deacon latched on quickly and splayed his chubby hand out across her breast.

"Easy with those teeth, boy. That hurts momma." Rayna patted his back. "Deacon John, are you eatin' or are you just playin'?" She looked down at him.

The little boy smiled up at her.

"God help me when you and that brother of yours get bigger. I'm never gonna be able to say no to you two. You got your daddy's smile and I can't say no to it even when I should. No I can't." She cooed at him. She let the baby nurse for a little while until he was done. Surprisingly Deacon and Jaymes were both still sleeping.

"Deac, let's go let Elvis out and feed him. When we finish we will come back up and see about your daddy and brother." Rayna got out of bed and walked downstairs with the baby on her hip. "Elvis, come on, boy. It's time to go outside." She called out.

The sound of the dog's nails hitting the hardwood floors echoed through the house. He barked excitedly and ran into the kitchen.

Rayna opened the kitchen door. "Go do your thing. Breakfast will be waiting for you." She sat the baby down on the floor and put Elvis' food and water bowls down. "You stay outta the dog's bowls." She added to her son.

She cleaned up the girls' breakfast dishes while she waited for the dog to do his business outside. She let him back in when he barked. She reached down to scratch behind his ears. "That's a good boy, Elvis. You're gonna get some company later when Maddie gets home from school. Blue is gonna come stay for a little while."

She sat at one of the stools watching Little Deacon crawl around behind the dog while she drank a cup of coffee. When she finished her coffee she picked the baby up and he let out a whine of protest. "You can come back down and play more in a little bit. We need to go up to check on daddy and brother. The dog barking is normally enough to wake your daddy. He doesn't sleep this deeply."

Rayna carried him up the stairs and back into the master bedroom. She was a bit concerned that Deacon was still sleeping. The only time she'd ever known him to sleep deeply was when he was passed out drunk. She didn't for a second suspect that he'd been drinking. The only other option left was that he was sick.

"Deacon," She nudged him gently. He snored a little in response. "Deacon John, wake up." She shoved him roughly.

Deacon sat straight up in bed. "What's wrong with you?" He asked sleepily.

"I was thinkin' of askin' you the same damn thing. You were asleep when I got home from taking the girls to school and you've stayed asleep even with the dog barkin'." Rayna told him.

"Sorry, baby, I just didn't sleep all that well last night and I was tired this mornin'. I think I may be comin' down with a little cold or somethin'." Deacon replied.

"Well, that's no good. Our tours leave in a few days and you can't be gettin' sick. Though it would be better for you to get sick now than while we're out on the road." Rayna rambled a little.

"Since when has a cold ever stopped me from gettin' on stage?" Deacon asked her.

"Alright, that's a good point. You could perform in your sleep if you wanted to." Rayna had to grant his point on that one.

"I'll be good as new in no time, babe, you'll see." Deacon assured her.

"I don't doubt you at all, babe." Rayna kissed his head.

"So, what city is this tour stoppin' in first?" Deacon asked.

"We will start out at the Bridgestone of course. You on Friday night and me on Saturday night. Saturday night you'll play Knoxville and I will meet you there with the boys after my show. Sunday is a travel day for you and I have a concert that night. Either way we will be able to leave Knoxville together." Rayna explained to him.

"Sounds alright to me, babe." Deacon nodded his head.

"Sounds better than alright to me. Let's make this the last time that we tour separately. From now on we either go on tour together or one of us goes and the other one tags along." Rayna bargained with him.

"That sounds like the best damn idea I've heard all day." Deacon grinned at her.

* * *

"Hey, ya'll, come on in and make yourselves at home. Drop your bags wherever you want you can get 'em later. Gunnar and I are both really excited that you wanted to stay with us for a little bit." Scarlett ushered her cousins into her house.

"I don't know about Daph, but I'm really excited to be here. You were a much better option than mawmaw, pawpaw, or Aunt Tandy. Rhett is getting into town later than he thought he would, but I think mom and dad wanted to make sure he could keep Elvis and Blue alive before they trusted him with us." Maddie replied.

"I don't know 'bout Lamar, but stayin' with mawmaw ain't so bad. I was with her for most of my life. I know first-hand that she ain't so strict." Scarlett informed her.

"Pawpaw and Aunt Tandy both are. I don't think they know how to have fun." Daphne observed.

Scarlett laughed and shook her head. "I think ya'll pretty well know where everythin' is in here. You're welcome to anythin' that we have. Follow me and I'll show you the music room." She led them outside and to the music room that was attached to the back of the house.

"There ya'll are. I've been wondering where you got off to." Gunnar stood up and smiled at them. "I don't know if Scarlett told you or not, but we are very happy to have you here."

"She told us. Hey, Gunnar." Daphne gave him a big hug.

"Hey, Daph, I think that you're gonna have a really good time with us even though you still have to go to school and do homework." Gunnar hugged her back.

"I know we will. I'm glad that we get to stay with you." Daphne smiled up at him.

"Now, I know there ain't much I can do or say that's gonna make you excited to be here. Only a certain cowboy can do that for you." Gunnar directed that comment at Maddie.

"I'm not so into him that I can't enjoy things without him. It could be worse we could be like my mom and dad. He couldn't go on tour without her arranging a tour where she could follow him." Maddie defended herself.

"Those two have issues when it comes to each other. They are good issues, but issues none the less. I wouldn't go comparin' myself to them when it comes to that if I were you. Any couple has to be better 'bout bein' apart than Rayna and Deacon are." Scarlett laughed.

"I think it was because they were apart for thirteen years and now they are trying to make up for lost time." Daphne put her two cents in.

"Daphne, I love you. Always stay as sweet and innocent as you are right now. I hope that you never figure out the real reason that mom and dad can't be apart for long." Maddie muttered.

"Maddie, watch yourself. I've told you I don't know how many times that's not somethin' I want to have to explain to your momma and daddy that your sister found out from us." Scarlett warned her.

"Dad's the one who would freak out about that. Mom would be surprisingly cool about it." Maddie shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, I don't wanna test that theory." Gunnar put a stop to all the crazy talk.

"That is the first good idea you've had in a long time." Scarlett told him.

"I gotta be right every now and then." Gunnar retorted with a grin.

* * *

"When I asked you out for a cup of coffee I didn't know that I was gonna be riskin' food poisonin' for it." Frankie looked around the diner that he and Bev had just walked in. This hadn't been at all what he expected when he asked her out.

"An old alcoholic like you I didn't think would care much 'bout the décor. It may look old, but the coffee and the pie are good." Beverly took a seat on a stool at the counter. It didn't faze her at all. Up until a few months ago she'd worked in a place like this her whole life.

"It should tell you somethin' that an old alcoholic like me is sayin' somethin'." Frankie sat down beside her.

"I promise you that it's well worth the risk." Beverly replied.

"I'll take your word for it." Frankie made a face.

Beverly picked up two menus. "Just look at the menu and shut up, Frankie."

"Sorry 'bout the wait. All of my waitresses are on break right now and it's the slow time of day. What can I get you folks?" Paul came out of the kitchen with a notepad in his hand. Despite all the water that was under the bridge between them Deacon had gotten him a job managing this place because the owner was a friend of his. It was close to his small apartment and his meetings were held at the church around the corner.

"Don't worry 'bout it, daddy. We just got here. I think Frankie needs a minute to look over the menu anyway." Beverly smiled at her father. She liked to come in every once in a while to check up on him.

"Hey, baby girl, how you doin'? Has it been a week already?" Paul smiled back at her.

"Yeah, it's that time of the week, daddy. I'm doin' good. How are you?" Beverly leaned over the counter and kissed his cheek.

"I could really use a drink, but other than that I can't complain." Paul replied. He offered his hand to Frankie. "Paul Claybourne, I'm Beverly and Deacon's daddy."

"Frankie Gray, I know Deacon from AA and I guess if you want to get technical 'bout it Bev here is my boss over at the Mile Marker." Frankie shook his hand.

"Go on and order whatever ya'll want it's on the house." Paul made a sweeping gesture with his hand.

"Daddy, you ain't gotta do that." Beverly tried to argue with him.

"Bev, it's the least that I can do. Let me do it." Paul told her not unkindly.

"Well, if you insist. You know what I'll have." Beverly gave in.

"I'll have what she's havin'." Frankie put his menu down.

"Two coffees and two pieces of pecan pie comin' right up." Paul went off to get their order.

"I'm gonna go freshen up a little bit. I will be right back." Beverly got up from the counter and walked to the bathroom.

Paul came back expertly balancing two plates and two cups of coffee. He sat them down on the counter. This was kinda cosmic justice. June had to hold down a job like this for years to pay all the bills while he hadn't been able to hold down a job. "There you go."

"Thank you," Frankie smiled at him politely.

"So, you're sweet on my girl are ya, Frankie?" Paul asked him meaning Beverly.

"Yeah, I am. That gonna be a problem for you?" Frankie gave him a hard look.

"I ain't got a problem with it at all. I'm just gonna tell you that you better not hurt her. She got enough of that from me and that husband of hers. She don't need another man that's gonna abuse her. So, if you can't handle treatin' her like a man should treat a woman you need to stop sniffin' 'round her like a horny old dog right now." Paul returned the look the younger man was giving him.

"That's all I intend to do is worship the woman that every other man has walked on. I'm crazy 'bout her and she can't even see it cause every other man in her life has treated her like she's lower than dirt. I'm a recoverin' alcoholic too and I know that I've let my daughter down more times than I should've, but I never put my hands on her. As her daddy it was your job to show her how a man is supposed to treat a woman. She saw you treat her momma like dog shit every day and she thought that was normal." Frankie didn't bother to hold back.

"Instead wastin' all that fire on me why don't you use it on Bev instead? She's gonna keep you on a long leash as long as you let her." Paul offered his unsolicited advice.

"I think I can handle her just fine. You're the one that broke her. I will gladly be the one that puts her back together. I think if anyone deserves it it's her." Frankie retorted.

"I think you just may be the man for her then." Paul said in a hushed tone as Beverly walked back over and sat down.

"What were you two doin'? Tradin' tips for the best meetings in the city?" She asked.

"Somethin' like that." Frankie put his hand on top of hers.

"What did I say 'bout your hands?" Beverly arched her eyebrow.

"I don't recall I must have tuned that part out." Frankie winked at her.

"Why do I even bother? It ain't like you listen to me no way." Beverly decided it was better to choose her battles with him. And really she didn't mind the way his hand felt on top of hers.

"Bev, please tell me you were never as bad a waitress as the ones I have workin' for me. I swear they all have to take a smoke break every five minutes. And it takes them forever to take an order. That's when they aren't flirtin' with the customers." Paul tried to make conversation. He didn't have to try as hard with his daughter as he did with his sons.

"Daddy, I've seen your waitresses. Momma and I could work circles 'round them. Hell, forget me in the equation. Momma could come in here and shape 'em up. Sid didn't put up with the crap that they try to pull with you. In the time it takes them to do one table I could cover three five tops. I worked in that diner so damn long I can call out orders in my sleep." Beverly replied.

"You know all that and still as a manager you try to make my life hell." Frankie added lightheartedly.

"I do it so my bartenders don't wind up as bad as daddy's wait staff. I ain't sure that half of 'em aren't drunk or high when they're workin'." Beverly snorted.

"I'll admit I do have a sorry bunch 'round here. Say, I'm playin' in a writer's round tonight and if you don't have anythin' goin' on maybe you'd wanna come by and check it out. It's at a sad little whole in the wall bar, but it's better than nothin'." Paul was hoping that she would say yes.

"Yeah, I can free up my busy schedule for you. Momma won't mind if I give myself some time off." Beverly smiled at him.

"I will leave ya'll to it then. I need to get back to work. Not that I have any other customers in here right now." Paul left them to their devices.

"Bev, what do you say we take a walk before we head back to the Mile Marker?" Frankie suggested once they had finished their coffee and pie.

"I think that sounds like a good idea." Beverly slipped her arm through his.

"You know it sure is sweet of you to check up on your daddy like that." Frankie commented as they walked.

"Someone has to. Deacon got him all set up with an apartment and that job, but he's not too quick to forgive. I figure that he can't ever really change unless he's given the chance. For Rhett and Deacon it's different and I'll be the first to admit that. Did he do things to me that he shouldn't? Hell yes he did, but he's still my daddy and he would show me his sweet side. His two sons are the ones that he really did wrong with. He beat the ever livin' snot outta Deacon every chance he got and he just flat out ignored Rhett." Beverly replied.

Frankie stopped mid stride and took her face in his hands gently. "Bev, I'm gonna kiss you now." He gave her a word of warning before he pressed his lips to hers.

"Frankie, please don't hurt me." Beverly whispered against his lips.

"That's the last thing I plan on doin' to you." Frankie said before he kissed her again.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Coming up next chapter is the boys' birthday party. I still have some good stuff planned for this story before it ends and I hope that you guys like what I have in store. Until next time please review.


	89. Chapter 89

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 89

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Deac and Jayme happy birthday to you." Rayna and Deacon sang to their boys. Each other stood up holding on to the sides of their cribs when their parents came in to wake them up.

"Well, lookie at these two, momma. We can't even surprise them for their birthday because they are already awake." Deacon smiled.

"They are wide awake and ready for their birthday breakfast." Rayna replied.

"Let's get them dressed then." Deacon said.

They changed their diapers and put them in onesies that said Happy 1st Birthday on them with sweatpants.

"Happy birthday, my boy." Rayna kissed Jayme's cheek.

"Happy birthday, big boy." Deacon kissed Deac's head. They switched twins and repeated the process.

They carried the boys down to the kitchen where Maddie and Daphne were waiting to shower them with attention. For breakfast they got pancakes with whipped cream on them and they were both a mess by the time they finished eating.

"OK, I have to go pick up their cakes and momma is gonna start to decorate as soon as Uncle Rhett wakes up to help her. Maddie, Daphne, can you two get these little monkeys cleaned up?" Deacon asked.

"Sure thing, dad." Maddie agreed.

"Of course, dad." Daphne chimed in.

* * *

"Rhett, how are those balloons coming?" Rayna called to her brother-in-law.

"They are comin' along, Ray. I think I've got 'bout every surface covered with them that I reasonably can." Rhett called back to her.

"Good. Thanks for gettin' up early to help out while your brother goes to pick up the cake." Rayna thanked him. She and Tandy were in the kitchen going over their to do list.

"It ain't a problem at all. It ain't every day that my two favorite nephews celebrate their first birthday. I can't think of anythin' else I rather be doin' right now." Rhett brushed off her thanks.

"Rhett, they are your only two nephews that automatically makes them your favorite." Tandy pointed out to him.

"Not true. Gunnar is my nephew by marriage." Rhett reminded her.

"There ain't many people that would admit to that. I don't think Scarlett wants to claim him most of the time." Tandy snorted.

Rhett went back to what he was doing, but he stopped in his tracks when he found a picture of Rayna and Deacon sitting on one of the bookshelves. He had to pick it up and carry it into kitchen. "Rayna, I gotta ask what in the world is this?"

"That picture was taken not long after your brother and I met and way before either one of us had any sort of fashion sense." Rayna smiled fondly.

"Ya'll look like a couple of babies. I'll say this I used to think that Maddie looked a lot like Deacon, but after seein' this I think she may look more like you." Rhett chuckled.

"From the nose down she looks like her daddy everythin' above that she got from me. She has his hair color and even though their eyes aren't the same color she has his expressive eyes. She also has his attitude and mannerisms for the most part. With her though I can at least the parts that she got from me. With those two little boys they are all Deacon when it comes to their looks. Deac got his daddy's personality and Jayme got mine. If it weren't for that small difference between them we wouldn't be able to tell them apart." Rayna replied.

"I gotta ask. How much makeup does it take to cover up those freckles?" Rhett laughed.

"I will have you know that I'm not wearing makeup right now and you can't see them. They faded as I got older thank you very much. Shut up, Rhett." Rayna rolled her eyes at him.

"Rhett, you don't want to make fun of her freckles. You have no idea how much she used to complain about them when she was a little girl." Tandy snorted.

"Ya'll know what? Everyone goes through their ugly duckling phase and that just so happened to be mine. For the life of me I still don't know what Deacon saw in me back then. He was older and cooler than I was. I'll never understand it." Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"Darlin', you didn't know how beautiful you were back then and you still don't. The older you get the better lookin' you get." Deacon carried a huge cake into the kitchen. He sat it down on the counter. "I hope ya'll think that you got a big enough cake."

"I think I have to have the sweetest husband in the world." Rayna smiled. He knew just what to say to make her feel better.

"That or he's just tryin' to get lucky. Though from what I've heard 'bout the two of you it don't take much." Rhett cracked.

"I'm just gonna pretend like I didn't just hear him say that. Deacon, we needed a cake that big, because a lot of people are going to be here later." Rayna went on.

"I didn't see the guest list, but just from hearin' you and Tandy talk 'bout it I'm sure it's huge." Deacon just shook his head.

"You just hush. Why don't you go upstairs and get the boys ready? Everyone is gonna be here soon and I want them to be dressed. I'm glad that I was able to get them to take a nap before this party. Hopefully neither one of them will be cranky." Rayna suggested.

"I'll go get 'em ready then." Deacon replied.

"Thank you, babe. I laid their outfits out for them. You don't even have to decide how to dress them." Rayna wanted to make sure that he put the right outfits on them.

"Of course, babe. I've got it under control." Deacon stole a kiss from her.

"Do you think he's actually gonna put the right outfit on Jayme?" Tandy asked after Deacon had gone upstairs.

"If he knows what's good for him he will." Rayna knew that he'd do what he wanted to do. She just hoped that he'd do what she'd asked him to.

* * *

"JC, I'm so glad that you're back." Maddie jumped into her boyfriend's arms.

"Hey, Cricket, I've really missed you too." JC wrapped his arms around her and spun her around while he kissed her.

"I want to hear everything that you've been doing. Don't hold anything back on me." Maddie said once he had put her down.

"It ain't all that excitin' you know what it's like out on the road. There's a lot of down time on the bus. I've done a few interviews, but other than that things have been really relaxed." JC replied.

"JC, you don't have to lie to me. I've heard that the after parties on Luke's tours are legendary." Maddie crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a look.

"You don't have anythin' to worry 'bout on that front. Will and I are either in our rooms or back on the bus at a reasonable hour. The after parties are pretty intense sometimes. Booze and girls and music." JC didn't feel the need to hold back with her. It was better to tell her the truth before she found out from someone else.

"I trust you. I was just talking to Cash and she said that Luke's tours can get a little out of hand sometimes." Maddie shrugged her shoulders like it didn't matter.

"Do me a really huge favor and stop listenin' to Cash. She doesn't always know what she's talkin' 'bout. You are the only woman that I have eyes for. I ain't gonna do anythin' that could risk what I've got with you." JC reassured her.

"I just had to make sure that you weren't having second thoughts about me. You might want to get out on the road and be a little wild for all I know." Maddie bumped her hips against his.

"Not on your life, Cricket. I can't afford to go wild. The last thing I need is to get kicked outta the Army." JC wrapped his arm around her shoulder and kissed her cheek.

"Good, I wasn't really gonna let you go. I like keeping you to myself." Maddie grinned.

"You're stuck with me whether you always want me or not." JC teased her.

* * *

"She is on some really good drugs if she thinks for a second I'm puttin' that outfit on my son." Deacon looked at the outfit that Rayna had laid out for Jaymes in disgust.

The outfit consisted of a pair of khaki pants, a white dress shirt, a red bowtie, a powder blue vest, and a golfer's hat. There were even a pair of brown loafers to go with it. He had half a mind to take it downstairs and burn it in the fireplace. The sad thing was he was pretty sure that Rayna and Tandy had probably spent a long time picking out this monstrosity.

Little Deacon's outfit thankfully wasn't that bad. It was a red flannel shirt, a pair of jeans, and cowboy boots.

"Daddy is gonna change the game plan on momma and Aunt Tandy a little bit. They are probably gonna kill me for this, but I love my little Rebel too much to allow him to be dressed like that. It's a good thing I just picked up a couple outfits for you boys or we would be in trouble." He made a decision that he knew wouldn't go over well with his wife and sister-in-law.

After he'd dressed both the boys he carried them into his bedroom and sat them on the bed while he got dressed. He scooped them up once he was finished dressing and carried them downstairs.

"Here come the birthday boys." He announced.

"Deacon, where is the outfit that my sister and I spent an hour picking out?" Tandy asked him.

"No son of mine is wearin' anythin' that looks like that. He woulda looked like a little investment banker out for a day on the golf course." Deacon replied.

"Tandy, even I have to admit that seein' my three boys lookin' like this is just a little better than the outfit we picked out for Jayme." Rayna smiled.

Deacon, Jaymes, and Little Deacon were dressed identically the only difference was the color of their flannel shirts. Deacon's was blue, Jaymes' was green, and Little Deacon's was red.

"As if the three of them didn't look enough like each other already." Tandy quipped.

"He couldn't deny those boys if he wanted to that's for sure. Babe, we knew that gettin' that outfit past Deacon was gonna be a long shot anyway." Rayna patted her sister's shoulder.

"That's true. Do you know what would be really adorable?" Tandy made a motion with her eyes towards Rhett.

"You're right it would be." Rayna jumped on her sister's idea.

"What in the Sam hell are you two talkin' 'bout?" Deacon wasn't sure he really wanted to know.

"Rhett, why don't you go on up and get you a flannel shirt outta Deacon's closet? It would be perfect if all four of the Claybourne boys matched." Rayna sweet talked her brother-in-law.

"Sure, Ray, anythin' you want." Rhett agreed.

"Great, his closet is the one closest to the bedroom door." Rayna waved him up the stairs.

"The power you have over all of us is unreal, woman." Deacon stole a kiss from his wife.

"You wouldn't know how to deal with me if I were any other way." Rayna took Jaymes out of his arms. "Happy birthday, my sweet boy." She kissed his head. "And happy birthday to you too, little man." She kissed her older son.

"You can come see your Aunt Tandy, Deac." Tandy took the boy in question out of his father's arms. "Happy birthday, handsome. Did you know that you were my first close male relative other than my daddy? That's right you were the first boy that we've had in the family for a long time. But, you were special and you came with a surprise. You brought your brother along for the party didn't you?"

"Jayme, go see your Aunt Tandy she's getting all sentimental." Rayna handed her other son to her sister. "Has anyone seen my baby girl?"

"She is up in her bedroom workin' on some super top secret birthday surprise for her brothers. I'm under strict orders not to disturb her she is almost finished." Deacon parroted what Daphne had told him.

"That doesn't sound like anything to be concerned about at all. We will just let the brand new teenager sit up in her room by herself." Rayna rolled her eyes.

"Ray, that ain't the teenager that we have to worry 'bout and you know it." Deacon pointed out to her.

"No, that teenager is probably out in the barn with her boyfriend doing things she damn well knows that we wouldn't approve of." Rayna sighed.

"I'm pretty sure that at her age you were doin' worse things that your sister and daddy didn't approve of. You were doin' me and you were livin' with me." Deacon reminded her.

"Oh God, I picked the wrong minute to walk back down here. I shoulda known that it was gonna turn into gutter talk sooner or later." Rhett groaned loudly. He was wearing a yellow flannel shirt.

"That was real damn cute, Deacon John. If I were you I'd watch myself. You're on thin ice already." Rayna warned him. "Rhett, you and Deacon grab the boys. I want a picture of you four together."

"Alright," Rhett complied easily.

Deacon and Rhett each took one of the boys and went to stand in front of the fireplace. Rayna snapped a few pictures.

"Oh my goodness, look at all my handsome men." June exclaimed when she walked in the front door.

"I see that Deacon didn't let you put Jayme in the outfit that you picked out." Beverly observed.

"Yeah, we aren't even gonna talk about that. It's better if I just let it go for now." Rayna replied.

"Happy birthday, my two wonderful boys." June tickled both boys under their chins.

Little Deacon grinned showing off the four teeth he had.

Jaymes giggled happily.

"So I guess Scarlett and Gunnar are goin' to get Paul." Deacon ventured a guess.

"They are runnin' behind for reasons I don't even want to guess at. Daddy is gonna drive himself." Beverly volunteered that information.

"I guess you're gonna let Frankie drive himself too then." Rhett teased her.

"Rhett, don't you play with fire, boy." Beverly warned him.

"Oh no, Rhett, tell me what you know." Rayna interjected.

"Probably the worst kept secret in Nashville right now is the fact that Bev and Frankie are datin'." Rhett informed her.

"Is that so? I shoulda known that those two would be drawn to each other." Deacon shook his head.

"Deacon John, be nice. He makes your sister happy and I think that we can all agree that she deserves that." June admonished him.

"Hell, I know that, momma. I'm just messin' with her." Deacon shrugged the rebuke off.

"Don't worry I'll hide all the sharp objects and baseball bats in the house. Though I don't think we have anythin' to worry 'bout. Deacon is on his better than best behavior these days." Rayna assured her mother-in-law.

"Deacon John, what did you do to get in trouble with your wife?" June sounded amused.

"It's possible that the guys from my band got into a prank war with the guys from her band and it got a little outta hand." Deacon admitted.

"A little outta hand doesn't begin to cover it." Rayna rolled her eyes.

"At least we're a loveable group of trouble makers." Deacon grinned.

"That's one way to put it anyway." Rayna cracked a smile. She pecked his lips. "You need to finish setting up for the party. I will keep the boys occupied and make sure that they don't get dirty for a little while."

* * *

When the house was finished being decorated it looked like a wild west town. Tandy had really outdone herself this time. Everything looked so realistic and in a word perfect. She didn't have any children of her own so she was free to spoil her nieces and nephews like crazy. Daphne's surprise for the boys had been that she made photo collages of each of them.

"Hey, stranger, fancy runnin' into you here." Rhett beamed when he opened the door to Sadie.

"Listen to you bein' all cheesy. Like you didn't know that I was invited." Sadie smiled at him.

Rhett hooked his fingers in her belt loop and pulled her in close. "Hi,"

"Hey," Sadie tilted her head up to look him in the eyes.

"I ain't seen you in forever and that's all I get." Rhett teased her by inching his face closer to hers.

"Maybe I like a man who makes the first move." Sadie bit her lip.

"And maybe you're all talk and no action." Rhett let his hands wander to her ass.

"For God sake one of you kiss the other or get out of the doorway where the whole world can see you." Tandy snapped at them playfully.

Rhett just shrugged his shoulders and dipped his head to kiss Sadie.

"That was some kiss you must be really happy to see me." Sadie put her hands on his chest.

"I am very happy to see ya. I have missed you so much." Rhett brushed a stray hair out of her face.

"I've missed you too." Sadie gave him a dazzling smile.

"Aren't ya'll just adorable together?" Rayna couldn't pass up the chance to give them a hard time.

"I swear no one in this little family unit knows how to mind their own business where romantic matters are concerned." Rhett rolled his eyes.

"Don't be ridiculous I tell Rayna almost everythin' and what I don't tell her I tell Tandy. Of course if I'm tellin' Tandy it's probably 'bout Rayna." Sadie kissed his cheek.

"Word of advice, little brother, don't question the way the womenfolk's minds work it'll only give you a giant headache." Deacon advised him.

* * *

"Look at these two guys. I can't believe they are already a year old." Coleman stooped down so that he was in Deac and Jayme's line of sight. "Don't you act all shy. You know your Uncle Cole." He tickled each of them under the chin.

"Rayna, they are both absolutely gorgeous and growing like weeds." Audrey observed.

"Thanks, Audrey. I know they are getting so big so fast. But look at these two. I still remember when they were little bitty things." Rayna pointed at Coleman's two daughters.

"What about those two girls of yours? I remember them being as little as these boys. I can't get over how much they've grown up. Maddie especially she's starting to look more like a woman and less like a little girl. You and Deacon have your work cut out for you there." Audrey replied.

"It's a good thing that momma and daddy both approve of her boyfriend or things would be a lot more difficult. They are attached at the hip. It's killin' them both to be apart for the tour he's on right now." Rayna nodded her head in agreement.

"That sounds like two other people I know." Coleman looked up at Rayna his eyebrow arched.

"Cole, we don't need your kind of help when it comes to our relationship." Deacon clapped his former sponsor on the back.

"I'm not sure what you two have is a relationship. I think you're addicted to each other in every sense of the word." Cole joked back.

"Does it look to you like either one of us cares?" Deacon laughed heartily.

"Girls, Maddie and Daphne are runnin' 'round here somewhere if you wanna go track them down." Rayna addressed Coleman and Audrey's daughters. The pair went off in search of Maddie and Daphne.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

"Songbird, these little boys sure are something special." Watty had to take his turn to fuss over the boys.

"No one can ever say that Deacon and I don't make beautiful things together. Though to look at 'em you wouldn't know that I had anythin' to do with their conception." Rayna chuckled. She loved that she had two little carbon copies of the man she adored to lavish attention on.

"That's not true I can see you in Jayme. That boy has the Jaymes' attitude that's no lie. I see Virginia in him just like I see her in you. Don't ever let anyone tell you any different." Watty smiled at her.

"Let's hope that they both know how to behave themselves like I do. I've got one man with the Claybourne temper to deal with. I don't need two more having it." Rayna looked up towards the ceiling as if she were praying.

"I don't think you're gonna have much luck on that one. From what I've seen of them they both already have their daddy's temper." Watty laughed.

"Wat, you're supposed to lie to me and make me feel better about the fact that these two are gonna be teenagers one day." Rayna whined.

"Songbird, you don't just have their daddy's genes to worry about when it comes to them being rebellious teenagers." Watty teased her.

"I'm gonna pretend like you didn't just say that. I was an absolute angel and you know it." Rayna pretended to be offended.

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Deacon got stuck talking to Rayna's Aunt Dottie. Not that he minded the two of them had been known to get into a little bit of trouble together back in the day. "Dottie, Rayna and I are both really ecstatic that you could make it today."

"Not only are these my beloved niece's sons they are my favorite trouble making buddy's sons. And they are my first nephews even if they are only my great nephews. I wasn't gonna be anywhere else in the world today. I would have sent out a posse to do unspeakable things to ya'll if you hadn't invited me." Dottie retorted.

"And then I wonder where Ray gets her smart mouth from. I forgot that you can be quite a pistol when you wanna be." Deacon looped his arm around her shoulders.

"You didn't forget anything of the sort. You're just trying to be cheeky." Dottie goaded him.

"Now you and I ain't gonna start somethin' here at my boys' first birthday party. You better be on your best behavior and I'll be on mine. Otherwise I don't think Ray will take too kindly to us spendin' time together." Deacon had to laugh at her.

"Deacon John, I don't know what you're up to, but you better be mindin' your manners like I raised you to." June didn't put anything past him and she wanted to check on him just to be sure that he wasn't getting into trouble.

"Oh believe me the only thing I don't do when I'm with Dottie is behave. Momma, have you met Rayna's Aunt Dottie?" Deacon asked.

"I have in passin', but I've never really gotten the chance to talk to her." June replied.

"Ok, I'm gonna leave ya'll to do that now. If I stay over here with her too long I'm gonna be accused of cookin' somethin' up whether it's true or not. Ray knows better than to trust the two of us together." Deacon left them to talk amongst themselves.

* * *

The house was packed with people there to celebrate the twins' birthday. Unlike most celebrity types Rayna and Deacon had only invited those closest to them and not their entire rolodex. The people who were there were like family. They had gotten more presents than should have been possible for two boys their age. Scarlett and Gunnar had gone completely overboard on both the boys because they were Jayme's godparents. Will and Mack hadn't spared any expense either since Will was Deac's godfather.

Sadie had also gotten carried away when it came to buying gifts. Rhett had gotten both boys tiny replicas of the Rivermen's jerseys. Tandy and Bucky as with everything when it came to their nieces and nephews went all out. Lamar had lavished gifts on his grandsons.

June had really reveled in the chance to finally be able to spoil her grandchildren and give them the things she hadn't been able to afford to give her own children. Juliette had of course gone over the top with her gifts not that anyone had expected anything less from her. Paul had even gotten them a little something. Since JC felt like their unofficial big brother he'd bought them gifts too.

After Rayna and Deacon helped the twins open their gifts they put a white oversized t-shirt over each of their outfits that read My Birthday Shirt across the front of it. They sat them in their highchairs. Each boy was presented with a small cake with one lit candle on it. Deacon helped them blow the candles out once everyone had sung happy birthday to them.

"Alright, now both you little dudes go for it." Deacon took the candles off their cakes.

Deac didn't hesitate he dug in with both hands.

Jayme took a different approach and he smashed his face into his cake.

"Well, Rayna, you'll never be able to say that your boys aren't well loved." Juliette observed.

"It would be a lie if I even thought that. This day has been incredible. It's bittersweet for me. These may be the last two babies I have and they are already one. I didn't dream in a million years that I'd have them, but sometimes what you think doesn't fit in with what the good Lord has planned." Rayna smiled fondly.

"I can't believe that I'm gonna be doin' this for Cadence in three more weeks. This year has gone fast." Juliette commented.

"I know before you know all three of them will be teenagers." Rayna agreed with her.

* * *

"Daddy knows that you boys got a lot of presents today, but ya'll got another one from me that I wanted to give you just the three of us. You won't be able to use these until you're a little older, but you'll get there." Deacon was putting the boys down for the night. He had two little guitar cases laying in the middle of the floor.

He opened the first case to reveal the little Martin that he'd bought for Deac. He took the guitar out of the case and sat down in the rocking chair with him in his lap. He put the baby's fingers on the strings and plucked them so he could feel the vibrations.

Deac laughed happily and tried to strum the guitar.

"Look at that you're a natural, Deac." Deacon kissed his head and put him back in his crib.

He took Jayme's guitar out of the case and repeated the same process he'd gone through with Deac.

Jayme's eyes got wide with excitement and his mouth opened in surprise.

Deacon put his guitar away and then sat in the rocker with both his sons on his lap. "Daddy can't believe that ya'll are a year old already. It seems just like yesterday you were born. You are the best surprise that I've ever gotten in my life. I cherish every moment that I have with you two. It means more to me than either of you will ever be able to understand. I love you so much and the greatest honor of my life is gettin' to be your daddy." He kissed them both.

"I think they both know that their daddy loves them a lot." Rayna said from the doorway. She'd been keeping a close eye on him to make sure he was ok. She knew that today would be a little bittersweet for him, because he hadn't gotten this with Maddie. She just wanted to make sure he wasn't feeling guilty. God knew that she was.

"How long have you been watchin' us?" Deacon asked her.

"Long enough to see you give them their first guitar lesson. I think Maddie was a little younger than them the first time you put her fingers on your guitar strings." Rayna recalled.

"She reacted pretty much the same way that they did. Like it was the greatest thing any of them have ever experienced. I can't believe that one is gonna be seventeen already." Deacon replied.

"These two ready for night-night song?" Rayna asked.

"They are they had a big day." Deacon answered.

Rayna took a book from behind her back. "I thought maybe we could change things up a little bit tonight. This was always a favorite of the girls'. I thought that maybe you could read it to them before we sing to them."

"I think that's a great idea, babe." Deacon smiled at her gratefully. He knew that she was trying to make up for keeping Maddie from him, but he didn't say that to her.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I kept this chapter light and fluffy because we have a few angsty ones coming up. I promise that it won't stay that way for too long though. Until next time please review.


	90. Chapter 90

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The songs used in this chapter are Old Habits by Justin Moore and Miranda Lambert and Last Call by Lee Ann Womack.

* * *

Chapter 90

"You know, Maddie, every time we write together I'm amazed at how good you are, but I really shouldn't be. You come from this long line of insanely talented people. Your mom, your dad, your grandma, and your grandpa." Cash said as she put her guitar in its case. They were in Scarlett and Gunnar's music room.

Maddie looked confused. "My pawpaw doesn't do country music."

"I didn't mean that grandpa. I meant Deacon's dad. It turns out that he wrote quite a few hit songs back in the day." Cash told her.

"I didn't know that. Dad never said anything about that to me." Maddie replied.

"I was thinking that maybe we could get together with him and see if he wanted to do a little writing." Cash suggested.

"I don't know, Cash. My dad is really strange about Paul. I don't think he would like it very much if I were working with him." Maddie made a face.

"It's not like you would be alone with him. I would be right there with you. If he can help us make better music then I think it's something that we at least need to consider." Cash reasoned with her.

"I'll have to think about it, Cash. I don't want to do anything that will upset my dad. From what I understand Paul isn't a very nice man." Maddie countered.

"Maddie, there are two sides to every story and you haven't heard his side of it yet. Until you do give him the benefit of the doubt. He is your grandpa after all. You don't need your dad's permission to see him. You're old enough to decide how you feel about him on your own. Just think about it." Cash shouldered her purse and picked her guitar case up.

"I will think about it, but I can't promise you anything." Maddie relented some.

Scarlett came out to check on Maddie. "Hey, Maddie, I don't wanna nag you or anythin' I just wanna remind you that if you don't do your homework we are all in trouble."

"Cash, was just heading out. I'm gonna go do my homework now." Maddie assured her.

"Thanks for letting me come over, Scarlett. This set up you and Gunnar have out here is pretty amazing." Cash smiled at the older woman.

"No problem, Cash, any time. That's five minutes I don't have to spend listenin' to Maddie mope over JC." Scarlett replied.

"She's not so bad once she gets to write about it." Cash laughed. "I gotta get going. See you soon, Maddie."

"Yeah, I'll see you soon, Cash." Maddie waved at her as she left.

"How much homework do you really have versus how much homework you told your momma you had when she called?" Scarlett asked her once they were alone.

"I really don't have that much homework. I have four math problems that I need to do. I finished everything else during class. I keep up with my homework. I don't want to give mom and dad a reason to take my music away from me." Maddie laughed a little at how her cousin was acting.

"Good, come on inside and I'll help you with that while Gunnar and Daphne make dinner. Those two have become attached at the hip. I don't know what either of them is gonna do once they don't get to see each other so often." Scarlett chuckled.

"I'm sure that they will manage. I think that Gunnar just likes having a friend that doesn't give him a hard time." Maddie knew all about how everyone made Gunnar the butt of their jokes.

"With JC and Will for friends I'm not sure that he needs enemies." Scarlett joked.

"They would beat up anyone else if they picked on Gunnar the way they do." Maddie pointed out.

"I know that. They can mess with Gunnar, but no one else better." Scarlett led her into the house.

"So, who is actually supervising who in the kitchen? Daphne can cook just fine. I worry about Gunnar boiling water." Maddie teased.

"I'm sure that they will manage just fine. If not that's what take out is for." Scarlett didn't seem convinced that Gunnar was up to the task of cooking.

* * *

"I hope ya'll don't mind, but we are gonna do a new song for you tonight." Deacon addressed the crowd in Charleston. He started strumming his guitar.

" _I say goodnight to an empty space beside me. The only reply is the beat of my heart. I wake up and I make two black cups of coffee. The routine bein' with you taught me left its mark. These old, old habits die hard."_ He sang the opening to the song.

Rayna walked onto the stage holding a mic and the crowd went wild.

"Rayna Jaymes, ladies and gentlemen." Deacon announced her presence.

" _I get in the car and turn the radio on. Expectin' you to sing along, but you never start. It's a lonely road and I can't see where it ends. Where I'm goin' and where we've been are so far apart. These old, old habits die hard."_ She took the next half of the verse. This was a song from their duet album.

" _I said goodbye when you let go. Still I hold on to all I've known. Wherever I am there you are. Cause old, old habits die hard."_ They sang the chorus together.

" _These four walls are slowly closin' in around me. Without your light I'm here drownin' in the dark."_ Deacon sang.

" _I pick up the phone then I come straight to my senses. I know the consequences of going that far."_ Rayna picked up again.

" _Old, old habits die hard."_

" _I said goodbye when you let you. Still I hold on to all I've known. Wherever I am there you are. These old, old habits die hard."_

" _I say goodnight to an empty space beside me. The only reply is the beat of my heart."_ Deacon finished the song softly.

"Listen to that, babe, I'd say that they liked that one. That just may have to be our next single." Rayna smirked at him.

"That's somethin' that we are gonna have to look into for sure, babe." Deacon agreed with her.

They did a couple more songs together before Deacon called Casey and Avery on for an encore.

"I don't think you need me out there at all, babe. You're sounding more and more confident all the time. You're starting to come into your own as a front man. I'm really proud of you." Rayna waited for him on the side of the stage with a towel and a bottle of water.

Deacon wiped his face with the towel and drank half his bottle of water. "I don't need you out there I want you out there. I love frontin' my own band, but not as much as I love makin' music with you." He kissed her cheek.

"And I love makin' music with you." Rayna wrapped her arm around his waist.

"What is on the agenda tonight, babe? This is your day off and you know I don't mind goin' back to the hotel with the boys." Deacon asked.

"Honey, I don't expect you to stay in the hotel room all the night. I know what it's like to get off the stage and be all keyed up. Let's go grab a late dinner. The boys are with the nanny and you know how much they like her. They will be fine if we take an hour or two for dinner. Sound good to you?" Rayna suggested.

"That sounds perfect to me. Maybe you want me to go back to my dressin' room and put on a dry shirt first though. I could probably wring this one out if I wanted to." Deacon started to walk back to his dressing room.

"Babe, that was really, really gross." Rayna laughed.

"It may be gross, but it's true." Deacon opened the door to his dressing room and walked inside. He peeled his t-shirt off and grabbed one from the rack.

"Have I told you lately how much Liz appreciates the fact that you like to keep your wardrobe simple?" Rayna asked him.

"Liz is probably chargin' me three times what she charges everyone else. I don't wanna hear too much complainin' outta her." Deacon pulled his new shirt over his head.

"I don't know what you two would do if you didn't have each other to pick on." Rayna laughed at him.

"I could do without her pickin' on me. I hustle her at poker one time and she takes up a lifelong vendetta against me." Deacon rolled his eyes.

"Come on, let's go get some food." Rayna held her hand out to him.

Deacon took her hand and let her lead him out.

* * *

"Hey, Will, what's up?" JC let himself into Will's dressing room after their show.

"Nothin' much. I'm waitin' for the circus to die down some before I get outta here." Will replied.

JC picked up a bottle of whiskey that sat on the table with a bow on it. "Break a leg love, Mack." He read the card attached to it. "Aw, isn't that so sweet. Will's boyfriend is sendin' him booze before his shows now."

"If you're gonna be a pain in the ass you can go back to your own dressin' room, kid." Will waded up a paper towel and threw it at him.

"You know I'm just fuckin' with you. There ain't no reason for you to be so damn cranky." JC easily dodged the projectile.

"I ain't cranky. You can just be annoyin' sometimes. Don't you have a girlfriend that you can go have phone sex with or somethin'?" Will gave him a look.

"You ain't cranky you just need to get laid, my friend. If I suggested phone sex to Maddie she would probably kill me on principle." JC retorted.

"This is hard. I know you know what I'm talkin' 'bout. At the most Mack and I are only apart for a couple of weeks because he has games outta town. I'm used to seein' him more often than this. I really miss him." Will explained.

"I do know exactly what you mean. Maddie and I are together damn near every day. I don't know how to cope with not bein' able to just hop in the truck and go see her. As a matter of fact, I hope it's not too late to call her. She doesn't really hold herself to a strict bed time, but she might've fallen asleep waitin' on me to call." JC knew exactly how Will was feeling because he felt the same way when it came to Maddie.

"The two of them really have the two of us tied up in knots don't they? It's fittin' that they're friends. Can't even go out on tour without worryin' 'bout what they're doin'. And we call ourselves cowboys. Cowboys ain't supposed to give a damn and they are supposed to have someone waitin' for them in every port or some shit." Will rambled.

"Will, I think one of us has listened to a few too many country songs from the seventies. Real life isn't really like that and you know it. You and I are both decent guys that would never dream of cheatin' on our partners. Mostly because if we did and they found out 'bout it we know they would set us on fire or somethin' like that." JC made a joke to cheer him up.

"Oh yeah, I could see Mack and Maddie puttin' their heads together to do somethin' to us if we even thought 'bout cheatin' on 'em. I'm a decent guy now anyway. I did cheat on Layla while we were married." Will pointed out to him.

"Will, you and Layla had a sham marriage. The only thing real 'bout it was the marriage license. And that was barely legal seein' as you married her in an all-night chapel. You were mixed up and scared to come out. You can't beat yourself up too badly 'bout that. You told her that you're sorry and that's all you can do. I don't see her cryin' any tears in her beer over you. She's so into Jeff Fordham that she don't know which way is up." JC advised him.

"How did someone as young as you get so damn wise?" Will laughed.

"You only ask that cause you've never met my daddy. He's got 'bout as much Man Wisdom as Deacon does. Don't question it just go with it." JC clapped him on the back.

* * *

"Rhett, Mack, what can I get for you boys?" Frankie asked both young men. They had just sat down at the bar.

"Don't worry 'bout us, Frankie, I'll take care of us you take care of the people that actually plan on payin' their tab at the end of the night." Rhett waved him off.

"Just tell me what you want so you don't have to get behind my damn bar and mess it up." Frankie rolled his eyes.

"Two draughts and two shots of whiskey." Mack ordered for them.

"Thank you, Mack, at least one of you has some manners." Frankie poured their shots and got their beers.

"I was just tryin' to put less work on you. I know that Bev can be a slave driver." Rhett shrugged his shoulders.

"That's one word for what your sister is anyway." Frankie more or less agreed with him.

"Trouble in paradise already, Frankie?" Mack took a sip of his beer.

"You doin' right by my sister?" Rhett asked after he'd drained half his beer. He and Mack both did their shots.

"Will you two do me a favor and shut up? There's nothin' wrong between me and Bev. Ya'll boys need to worry more 'bout your love lives. One of you has a girlfriend out on tour where all kinda men will be more than willin' to take care of her needs. The other of you has a boyfriend that men and women both want." Frankie poured them another shot.

"Sadie isn't technically my girlfriend." Rhett corrected him.

"I don't have anything to worry about with Will. He's on tour with the bigoted cowboy. He's not going to do anything to draw attention to the fact he's gay." Mack chimed in.

"If Sadie isn't your girlfriend then what the hell is she?" Frankie looked confused.

"She's my fuck buddy for lack of a better term. Though I think it mighta turned into a little more that." Rhett answered.

"You know it's sad when the semi closeted gay man has a more stable relationship than you don't you?" Mack joked.

Rhett flipped him off. "Fuck you, Booth. I take back what I said earlier she is my girlfriend."

"Hey, don't call me Booth. My own parents don't even call me Booth and they are the ones that gave me that ridiculous name." Mack pushed his shoulder.

Rhett pushed him back. "Forgive the fuck outta me for callin' ya by your name." They both did their shots like that exchange hadn't just happened.

"Frankie, what the hell did you do to those two that they are wrestlin' 'round like two pups?" Beverly walked behind the bar.

"I didn't do nothin' to 'em, sugar. I think they were both born like that." Frankie answered.

"Just make sure if they have too much to drink you take their keys. I'll call Gunnar to come get 'em." Beverly stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

"Did your sister just talk about us like we aren't sitting right here?" Mack looked over at Rhett.

"Yeah, she did. That's ok I didn't wanna talk to that old witch anyway." Rhett smirked.

Beverly leaned over the bar and smacked the back of Rhett's head. "Baby brother, I'm a bitch not a witch get it right."

* * *

"Rayna," Juliette opened the door to Rayna's dressing room the next afternoon. They were doing sound check and the older woman had requested her presence.

"Come on in, Juliette." Rayna had just stepped out of the bathroom.

Juliette walked in and closed the door behind her. "What did you wanna see me 'bout?"

"It's really important. Tell me that Emily is free to run an errand." Rayna sat down at her vanity.

"Emily is on a conference call with the office. Tandy called her and told her to get her people under control or somethin' to that effect. I'm not really sure what's goin' on there." Juliette sat down in a chair across from Rayna.

"Damn it, I really needed her to run this errand for me." Rayna cussed.

"What do you need that is so secretive you can't run out and get it yourself?" Juliette had to pry a little.

"I need a damn pregnancy test if you must know and I know that you must." Rayna retorted.

"Are you sure that it's a pregnancy test you need and you're not just goin' through menopause?" Juliette looked skeptical.

"I'm not that old thank you very much. I'm pretty sure I'm pregnant anyway or at least it's a possibility that I can get pregnant. It's not like I have pickled eggs or somethin'. All I know is I'm sick to my stomach, my boobs are sore, and my moods are all over the place. I'm either getting ready to start my period or I'm pregnant. The fact that I'm not taking my birth control right now tells me I'm probably pregnant." Rayna went off on a tirade.

"Ok, calm down. Lucky for you even though Emily is busy right now she can still go out and run that errand for you. She has two phones I'll just text her on the other. She won't let me or Tandy have both her numbers because she says that we both drive her crazy enough as it is." Juliette typed out a quick text to Emily.

"That was smart thinking on her part. You're a pain in the ass to deal with and so is from sister. The last thing she needs is you both ganging up on her." Rayna laughed softly.

"Hey, Grandma Mother, zip it or you can go buy your own pregnancy test." Juliette pointed a finger at her. She read the text that Emily had sent her in response. "She said she will be ten fifteen minutes tops."

"Thank God I don't really want to have to sit and wonder about this all day. I can't afford to miss my cues and stuff. And seriously? Did you just call me that? Cadence is lucky that she never choked on glitter or sequins back when you were nursing. If I'm Grandma Mother then you're Stripper Mother." Rayna shot back.

"Now that you mention it I think I do have some tassels in my wardrobe." Juliette smirked.

Fifteen minutes later Emily walked in carrying a bag from the pharmacy. "I don't wanna know so I'm not gonna ask, but I got three different. I won't even ask which one of you this is for. If I don't know anything then people can't ask me questions. Rayna, your sister is on a power trip please do something to stop here. On that note I'm gonna go find Rusty if Deacon hasn't sent him out on some crazy errand. Two tours and two personal assistants this just isn't working." She rambled for a minute before she left again.

"We really need to pay her more." Rayna laughed.

"Yeah we do. Go take your tests before our husbands get back and catch us in the act." Juliette told her.

"Alright, I'm goin'." Rayna picked up the bag and went into the bathroom.

* * *

"Cash, do you mind telling me what we are doing here?" Maddie looked at the rundown diner they had pulled up to and crinkled her nose.

"They supposedly have some of the best pie in Nashville and I wanted to see if that was true. It's not like you and I have anything better to do right now." Cash pointed out to her.

"For them to have the best pie in Nashville this place looks dead." Maddie observed.

"Maddie, just come inside with me. If nothing else we only wasted a little bit of time ok?" Cash bargained with her.

"Ok, I'll come inside with you." Maddie opened the door of Cash's cherry red Mustang and got out.

"Maddie, I don't know why you argue sooner or later you do things my way." Cash opened the door to the diner and they both walked inside. The place was dead there wasn't another customer in there. They sat down at the counter and waited for someone to come out.

Paul walked out front a moment later and he looked surprised to see his granddaughter sitting there. "Maddie, what are you doin' here? Your daddy would skin me alive if he knew you were here."

Maddie looked over at Cash unsure of what to say for a moment. On one hand she was livid with her on the other hand she didn't want to seem uncool in front of her friend.

"Deacon knows and he's cool with it." Cash answered for her.

"I don't know if I believe that or not. I know how my son feels 'bout me." Paul looked skeptical.

"Chill out, Paul, dad knows and he said it was ok." Maddie followed Cash's lead.

"Ok..." Paul still didn't seem sure about this. "What can I do for you?"

Cash made a gesture with her hand to tell Maddie to let her handle this. "Maddie and I are songwriters. We were doing some research the other day and we found out that you were quite the songwriter yourself in the sixties and seventies."

"Dad never mentioned that. I thought it was really cool." Maddie chimed in.

"That's probably because your daddy didn't know. June probably knows 'bout it she just let it slide like everythin' else. I wasn't a good husband and father or provider for my family. Hell knowin' me the way I do I probably drank the royalties up." Paul admitted.

"So, would you be interested in writing something with us?" Cash asked him.

"How 'bout you give me a minute alone with my granddaughter?" Paul asked her. There was something about her that he didn't like. It took someone shady to recognize it in another person.

"Sure. Maddie, I'm gonna head out to the car for a minute. Just wave when you want me to come back in." Cash got up and walked outside.

"Maddie, I don't think your daddy knows you're here. I know for a fact that he would be pissed if he knew. That bein' said you're my granddaughter and I ain't gonna turn you away. I'm gonna give you a chance to get up and walk away. I'd understand if you didn't want anythin' to do with me. I beat on your daddy and aunt and I damn near killed your mawmaw. I don't have a good reason for that and I can never make up for it. The only reason I fight so hard to say sober now is so I can see my grandchildren occasionally. Now if you still wanna stay knowin' all that it's your call." Paul laid out for her.

"I know what I'm doing, Paul. You don't have to worry." Maddie replied.

"Maddie, I should warn that I'd only trust your friend Cash as far as I could throw her. I ain't a good person and I can recognize that in other people. Somethin' 'bout her rubs me the wrong way." Paul warned her.

"An old wife beater like you could throw her pretty far she doesn't weigh that much." Maddie shot back.

"Oh, you've got a lot of your daddy in you, girl. You better get her back in here. If you two are gonna learn 'bout song writin' it's gonna take a while and we ain't much time today." Paul managed to keep his cool. If she'd said that to him back in his drinking days he probably would have backhanded her off that stool.

* * *

" _I recognized your number. It's burned into my brain. Felt my heart beating faster every time rang. Some things never change. That's why I didn't answer."_ Rayna sang a song off of the new album she was working on.

" _I bet you're in a bar listenin' to a country song. Glass of Johnny Walker Red with no one to take you home. They're probably closin' down sayin' no more alcohol. I bet you're in a bar 'cause I'm always your last call."_ Like so many other songs she had written this one with Deacon. She wanted the songs on this album to be deeper and more personal than the ones on her last album. She'd gotten calls like this from him numerous times.

" _I don't need to check that message I know what it says. Baby I still love you don't mean nothin' when there's whiskey on your breath. That's the only love I get so if you're callin'."_ She loved over at Deacon standing on the side of the stage. She was so glad that he had changed and she didn't have to worry about that with him anymore. It made her feel better about the life and the family they were building together.

" _I bet you're in a bar listenin' to a cheatin' song. Glass of Johnny Walker Red no one to take you home. They're probably closin' down sayin' no more alcohol. I bet you're in a bar 'cause I'm always your last call."_

" _Call me crazy, but I think maybe we've had our last call."_ She belted that line out.

" _I bet you're in a bar. It's always the same old song. That Johnny Walker Red by now it's almost gone. But, baby, I won't be there to catch you when you fall. I bet you're in a bar 'cause I'm always your last call."_ She finished the song strongly. She smiled when Deacon clapped and cheered for her.

"Damn, Ray, that song really turned out better than we hoped it would." Deacon said as they walked out of the venue together.

"It did. I think that is a contender for the first single to be released. Come on, take a walk with me. I have something to tell you." Rayna looped her arm through his and walked with him until she found the perfect spot.

They walked up on Folly Beach Fishing Pier and stopped when they came to the middle of it. They had visited this pier one of the first times they had played a major tour in Charleston.

"What do you need to tell me, Ray?" Deacon brushed a stand of hair out of her face.

Rayna took the positive pregnancy test out of her purse and handed it to him. "I know this isn't as creative as how I told you about the boys, but I thought it was fitting. You're gonna be a daddy again. I'm pregnant."

Deacon looked at the test and then looked at her. "Oh my God, baby, we're havin' another baby. That didn't take much tryin' at all." He laughed happily.

"I didn't think it would. You and I have a pretty good track record when it comes to getting pregnant without really trying. You know what makes this time even more special?" Rayna ran her hand over his stubble.

"No, what?" Deacon asked a little confused.

"This time you're the first person to know other than me. I wouldn't even tell Juliette what the test said and she was there with me when I took it." Rayna smiled at him.

Deacon put his hands on her hips, lifted her up, and spun her around while he kissed her. "I love you so damn much, Ray. You have no idea what that means to me."

"I know exactly what it means to you. It means just as much to me. We are finally where we need to be and everything else we can just take as it comes." Rayna kissed him again when he sat her back on her feet. She was deliriously happy at the moment and there's was nothing anyone could do to bring her down.

"Let's get to them boys and tell them that they are gonna be big brothers." Deacon grinned excitedly.

"I think it's safe to tell them. They won't go running off at the mouth, but that's it. I don't wanna tell anyone else until we know for sure." Rayna took his hand and laced their fingers together.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Things just got a whole lot more interesting that's for sure. There's another baby on the way for Rayna and Deacon. Maddie is in over her head with Cash and she doesn't even realize it yet, but she will in time. I promise that Cash's horrible character flaws at least serve a purpose in this story and Maddie won't stay blindly loyal for too long. Everyone around her can see that Cash is up to something. Until next time please review.


	91. Chapter 91

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 91

"Ms. Jaymes, I'm Dr. Brown you were referred to me by your primary OBGYN. I got the results back from the blood draw that we did when you first got here today and you are indeed pregnant." Dr. Darryl Brown said as he walked into the exam room.

"As far as this appointment today goes what are you gonna be doin'?" Deacon asked him.

"We will do an ultrasound just to see how far along she is. Depending on what that shows we may be able to hear the baby's heartbeat." Dr. Brown replied.

"That sounds good to me." Rayna piped up.

"Yeah, me too." Deacon agreed.

Dr. Brown pulled up Rayna's gown and squirted gel on her stomach. "That's a little cold, sorry about that. Now, we may not see anything at all today and I don't want you to be alarmed by that. It probably just means that you're not far enough along." He moved the wand around her stomach. "Ok, based on the measurements I'm getting right now you're looking at a late August early September due date."

"Ray, does that sound right to you?" Deacon asked her.

"It sounds entirely possible to me. That just means we were pregnant before we started trying to get pregnant." Rayna answered him.

"Apparently we ain't never gonna have to do much tryin' when it comes to that." Deacon chuckled.

Dr. Brown turned up the volume on the ultrasound machine and the whoosh-whoosh-whoosh of the baby's heartbeat filled the room. "From everything that I can see so far you have a perfectly healthy baby. I'll print these out for you. You also need to make an appointment with your regular OBGYN as soon as possible."

"Thank you, Dr. Brown, we will do that." Rayna smiled at him.

"I'll make sure that she does it." Deacon added.

"I'll leave you to get dressed then. Congratulations." Dr. Brown smiled at them before he left the room.

"Wow, Ray, this is really happenin' for us again. We are havin' another baby." Deacon grinned widely.

"We are having another baby. And we are way farther along in this pregnancy than I thought we were. He said late August early September. We either made this baby the night of the CMAs or the night that we had your platinum record party. I'm leaning more towards the latter." Rayna thought out loud.

"Baby, I don't care when we made this baby. I only care that it's healthy. Nothin' else really matters." Deacon kissed her forehead.

"I couldn't have said it better myself. I hope the girls are as excited about this baby as they were about the boys. They are so good with those boys and I happen to think that they would be adorable with a baby sister." Rayna smiled at the thought. She got changed back into her clothes.

"All four of them would be adorable with a baby sister." Deacon held out his hand to her.

Rayna took his hand. "I remember what you were like with Scarlett and Maddie when they were little. I can't wait to see you like that full time."

"You sound so sure that this is a girl." Deacon teased her a little.

"Deacon, they say that a momma always knows. I've had a pretty good idea with every pregnancy what I was having. I knew that at least one of the twins was a boy because I felt different during my last pregnancy than I did when I was carrying the girls and it wasn't just because there were two babies. This pregnancy feels like it did with Maddie and Daphne. I am sick to my stomach all the time and I'm craving sweet foods." Rayna explained to him.

"Well, if you say so you're the expert, babe." Deacon leaned over and kissed her cheek. On the way out of the office they stop at reception and got the printouts from the ultrasound.

"There's our little bean, daddy." Rayna bumped her hip against his.

"It sure is. One of those is goin' in my guitar case right next to the boys' ultrasound pictures." Deacon beamed with pride. He was such a proud father, his kids and Rayna were his world.

"You gonna feed me and this baby?" Rayna asked him.

"Yes I am 'cause I gotta feed me too. We've been on the road all damn night and I'm starvin'." Deacon replied.

* * *

Maddie and Daphne stood on the front steps of their school after classes. Maddie was texting and talking with her friends while Daphne talked to some of her friends. They were very engrossed in what they were doing.

"You know if you were to look up from that phone every now and then you might see somethin' interestin'." JC's voice came from over Maddie's shoulder.

"Oh my God, JC, you're here." Maddie smiled from ear to ear.

"These are for you." JC handed her a bouquet of roses.

"JC! You're back!" Daphne wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I'm in town for the night. I brought you something too." JC handed Daphne a bouquet of daisies.

"Thanks, JC, you're the best." Daphne chirped happily.

"You really are the best, babe." Maddie kissed his cheek.

"Anythin' to please you. You know that." JC rubbed her cheek with the back of his hand.

"You're doing a good job of it." Maddie hugged him.

"So, I was thinkin' that we could get out of here and spend some time together." JC suggested.

"Babe," Maddie went to explain.

"Hey, Maddie, you coming or what?" Cash had just pulled up in her Mustang.

"You'd love to hang out with me, but you have plans with Cash." JC filled in the blanks for her.

"She's playing at the Bluebird and we are doing sound check, dinner, and then the show. Want me to see if she can get you in too?" Maddie informed him.

"I can get into the Bluebird without a problem. I'll meet you there." JC replied.

"Maddie, we really have to get going." Cash told her.

"I can drive you if you want." JC offered.

"You have to be on the approved pick up list. Her mom called the school and added me." Cash spouted off.

"I've been on the approved pick up list for months." JC shot back.

"Babe, I'm gonna go with Cash, but I will see you later tonight." Maddie kissed his cheek.

"Can I come too?" Daphne asked hopefully.

"Daph, you have plans with Gunnar and Scarlett tonight. This wouldn't be any fun for you." Maddie dismissed her sister. She got in the car with Cash and they drove away.

JC and Daphne stood on the steps and watched them leave.

"Cash is like her new best friend." Daphne said sadly.

"How 'bout I sign you outta here and drive you home?" JC suggested to her.

"Really?" Daphne brightened up considerably.

"Really, I think we can even do some writin' together before I have to go meet Maddie." JC put his arm around her shoulders.

"Are all boyfriends as nice to their girlfriends' baby sisters as you are to me?" Daphne asked him.

"No not all boyfriends are as nice as me, but I don't know how anyone could be mean to you." JC replied.

* * *

"Hold on, I'm comin'." Sadie called out in response to the knock on the door of her hotel room.

"You ain't comin' yet, but you will be as soon as I get you outta those clothes." Rhett smirked when she opened the door. He was leaned up against the door jamb dressed in his baseball uniform. The knees of his pants were covered in dirt.

"Rhett, get in here. I can't believe you're bein' that dirty where people can hear you." Sadie pulled him inside the room with a blush on her cheeks.

"It got your attention didn't it?" Rhett made his eyebrows dance.

"You're a goofball. What are you doin' here?" Sadie put her hands on her hips.

"That's the greetin' I get after I drove three hours just so I could see you for a little bit? In most circles that would make me what is considered a good boyfriend." Rhett stuck out his bottom lip pretending to be hurt.

Sadie's expression softened and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "You're better than a good boyfriend you're a great boyfriend. I can't believe you drove all this way just to come and see me." She pressed her lips to his.

"I came all this way just to tell you that I'm your boyfriend and you're just gonna have to tell all those other guys that you're meetin' out on tour that you're taken. And your boyfriend is a big badass baseball player that will gladly kick their asses with a smile on his face if they even think 'bout puttin' the moves on his woman." Rhett pulled away for a moment before kissing her again.

Sadie took the baseball cap off his head and threw it across the room. "Don't tell me you came all this way just to tell me somethin' that I already knew without you saying it. Rhett, I haven't even thought about another man since I started sleeping with you. I know that we said we were only supposed to be casual and for fun, but along the way I started falling for you hard."

"I thought it would be nice for you to hear the words. I shoulda brought you flowers or somethin', but I didn't think that far ahead." Rhett rambled a little bit.

"I can think of a way for you to make that up to me." Sadie started undoing the buttons on his jersey. Once she was finished she pushed it off his shoulders.

"Oh yeah? What's that?" Rhett pulled her t-shirt over her head.

Sadie undid the belt that held his pants up and then pushed them down around his ankles. "I was thinkin' that we could put that thing you keep in your pants to good use." She smirked against his lips.

"I won't argue with you there, woman." Rhett undid her jeans and pushed them down. He put both his hands on her ass and he grinned when he felt bare skin. "Either you're goin' commando or you're wearin' a thong."

"Let's just say I was thinkin' about you earlier and it got me so hot I had to put a thong on. I was gonna send you pictures." Sadie licked the shell of his ear.

Rhett kicked his shoes and his pants across the room. He dropped his underwear and pulled his t-shirt over his head. He stood there in front of her naked his sculpted body on display.

Sadie wasted no time in shedding the rest of her clothes she pushed him down on the bed and straddled him with her knees on either side of his hips. She took his dick in her hand and sank down on to him slowly.

They both moaned out in pleasure as she began to rock her hips. He put his hands under her ass and lifted her up and down his shaft.

"Christ, Rhett, what are you doing to me?" She threw her head back.

He kissed her neck as he thrust up into her. It didn't take either of them long to reach the point of no return. Afterwards they collapsed on the bed naked in each other's arms and fell asleep.

About an hour later there was another knock on Sadie's door. She answered the door dressed in new clothes it was easy to tell that she had just gotten out of the shower.

"Rayna, hey, is there somethin' I can do for you?" Sadie asked.

"We were all getting ready to go out and grab something for dinner. I was just wondering if you wanted to come with us." Rayna looked around the inside of the younger woman's room.

Just then the shower shut off and Rhett came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Good lord, you two are worse than my teenager. Rhett, get some damn clothes on. We are all meetin' up in the lobby in a half hour. I will expect you two then. I don't even wanna know how long he's been here, but I'm sure it's been long enough for you to take care of business and now you can join us for dinner." Rayna shook her head at them.

"We are in no way as bad as Maddie and Jimmy are." Rhett protested.

"Rayna, this isn't what it looks like I swear." Sadie tried to put up a little bit of a defense.

"I'm only gonna say two things. First of all, you are both grown adults what you do with your free time is your own business. Secondly, Luke is gonna be mighty disappointed that Rhett is here. I think he's sweet on you, girl." Rayna walked down the hall laughing. It just so happened that their tours had met up with Luke's tour in New Orleans.

"She does not help matters at all sometimes." Sadie groaned.

"She just likes givin' us a hard time. It's a good thing I brought a change of clothes with me." Rhett pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.

* * *

"So, what is it like being out on tour with Luke, JC?" Cash asked him to make conversation.

"It's like one big party. Like is less 'bout the music and more 'bout havin' thousands of screamin' fans." JC took a sip of his soda.

"That's not a terrible thing though is it, babe? JC is actually a really amazing songwriter too. He wrote most of his album himself." Maddie bragged on him.

"It's not terrible at all. I'm just used to it bein' more 'bout the music and less 'bout bein' some stage personality." JC explained.

"Sometimes you just have to play to your fans." Cash threw out there.

"I'm more three chords and the truth than the Luke Wheeler experience. I can definitely tell the difference between his fans and Deacon's fans." JC went on.

"He's still really grateful for the opportunity though. This gets his music out to a different demographic." Maddie added for him.

"I ain't gonna complain as long as I get to play. I could play to little places like this all the time and I would be content as long as my music was gettin' heard." JC shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, you've got an amazing opportunity being on Luke's tour. For a baby artist like you that is great exposure." Cash nodded her head at him.

"I ain't gonna argue that at all." JC granted her point. He wasn't stupid he just wasn't used to Luke's brand of fame.

"He's no normal baby artist though. He has a platinum album and several CMAs under his belt." Maddie smiled at him proudly. She felt the need to keep up the flow of conversation between him and Cash. She could tell that they weren't completely comfortable with each other.

"Listen to you sounding like a proud girlfriend." Cash gave her patronizing smile.

"I'm a pretty proud boyfriend too though. For someone so young she is amazin." JC didn't like the tone that Cash had taken with him.

"She's better than good for someone her age. She's great for anyone of any age." Cash's eyes turned cold for a moment.

"You don't have to try to sell her to me. We started out as writin' partners." JC put his arm around Maddie and sent Cash a warning look.

"Well, I should go get ready to go on. I'll leave you two to it." Cash smiled and got up from the table.

Maddie looked over her shoulder just in time to see Paul walk in. She waved him over to the table with a big smile on her face. She got up and gave him a hug. "Thanks for coming tonight, Paul."

"No problem, I'm glad that you and Cash invited me." Paul hugged her back and he took a seat.

JC's eyes got big, but he didn't say anything.

"It's good to see you again, JC." Paul offered him his hand.

"Good to see you too, Paul." JC shook his hand.

Cash got up on the stage with her guitar. "Hey, ya'll. I've been working with this really amazing young song writer lately, but I'll let you judge for yourselves." She started playing her song.

"Well, it sounds like you took the advice I've been givin' ya." Paul commented.

"I didn't come to you not to take your advice." Maddie laughed.

JC nodded his head along to the beat of the song. He got a strange look on his face when he heard the line. _"So, don't lie to me just to get in my pants."_ He bit his lip deep in thought. "Maddie, you wrote this?"

"Almost every word." Maddie stated proudly.

"Oh, I see." JC replied uneasily.

 **XXXXXXXXXXXX**

JC hung back while Maddie walked Paul out to his truck.

"She's even more amazing than you realized isn't she?" Cash walked up behind him.

"I've always known how amazin' she is. The way I figure it is the wrong person came along and figured out just how special she is." JC turned around to stare her down.

"Or the right person came along to help break free of everything and everyone that's holding her back. Cowboys who can play guitar are a dime a dozen in this town. In all likelihood you'll fade into obscurity within a decade and she'll still be going strong. We both know that she's better than you could ever hope to be. It won't be long until she figures that out and she hops on some other cowboy that's just as talented as she is." Cash looked him up and down and scoffed like he left a bad taste in her mouth.

"You're outta your damn mind if you think that her momma and daddy are just gonna let you exploit her. It's people like you that they are tryin' to protect her from. And I don't know what the fuck you're thinkin' gettin' Paul involved. There's a reason that Deacon really doesn't associate with him. It ain't your place to go dredge up things you know nothin' 'bout." JC didn't shrink back from her.

"Those are the main people other than you I'm talking about holding her back. She can't be a normal teenager because she's not normal. Right here and now she could be bigger than Rayna Jaymes. And on one of her bad days she's damn sure better than Deacon Claybourne could ever dream of being. The only reason his last album did so well is because of who his wife is." Cash spit back at him.

"I ain't gonna let you get away with what you're tryin' to do. Come hell or high water I will stop you." JC promised her.

"I've already done it. There's nothing for you to stop." Cash arched her eyebrow at him.

Maddie walked back over to them at that moment. "Hey, sorry, about that. Babe, did you wanna go spend some time together?"

"Maddie, when I said I was here for the night I meant it. I gotta go back to Gunnar and Scarlett's so he can drive me to the airport. You can ride over there with me." JC sighed.

Maddie took his hand and leaned in to kiss him.

"Maddie, you better get going. I promised Scarlett that would be back early." Cash interrupted.

"Yeah, she's right we better get going." Maddie went and got in the passenger side of his truck.

Cash sent him a look that said see what I mean.

JC glared at her and got into his truck.

"Babe, what's wrong? You seem really tense." Maddie asked him.

"Maddie, I'm fine. I'm just a little disappointed that we didn't get to spend any time alone together." JC lied.

"Is sex all I am to you? You're pouting because we didn't get to have sex. Maybe Cash was right about you. You only want one thing from me." Maddie rolled her eyes at him.

"That's not true at all. You need to stop lettin' Cash lead you around so much. Think for yourself, Maddie. Open your damn eyes she's tryin' to drive a wedge between you and everyone you care 'bout. You're not that blind." JC let loose on her.

"You're jealous because I have a friend other than you. Well, guess what. I need someone else I can talk to with you out on the road." Maddie scoffed at him.

"Just forget that I said anythin', Maddie." JC drove the rest of the way to Gunnar and Scarlett's in silence.

* * *

"Shh, JC, you need to keep it down, man. I know it's just a bunch of musicians on this floor, but you gotta be a little quiet." Will cautioned JC. From the airport to the hotel JC had gotten drunk. He was still upset from his fight with Maddie. Will put his hands on his shoulders to steer him in the right direction.

"Get your damn hands off me, Will." JC pushed him into the wall.

"Hey, what the fuck is wrong with you?" Will pushed him back.

JC hit him with a right cross. The two of them really tied up fighting then. They rolled around on the floor for a little while before they were pulled apart.

Deacon had ahold of Will and Max had JC in a hold.

"Deacon, Max, get those two in here now." Rayna said from the door of her room.

"You two done fucked up by the numbers. That ain't a tone of voice you wanna hear from her." Max commented to them.

Deacon and Max took the two young men into the room and closed the door.

"Jimmy, Will, have a seat." Rayna ordered them. Both of them did as they were told. "Now, who wants to tell me what that was about?"

"I don't know ask him. He's been all doom and gloom since I picked him up. I take it things didn't go with Maddie, but he won't talk 'bout it." Will wiped the blood away from his nose.

"Here, take that." Max handed him a towel full of ice.

"That's the understatement of the year." JC snorted.

"Put that on your knuckles." Deacon handed him a homemade icepack.

"Jimmy, start talkin' now before I go next door and wake your sister up. I know you don't want that." Rayna stared him down with her hands on her hips.

"Things with Maddie went pretty shitty. When I showed up at the school to take her and Daphne out for a little while she got into the car with Cash and headed off to parts unknown. I met up with them at the Bluebird after I'd written some with Daph and lo and behold Paul shows up." JC didn't want Hailey brought into this if he could avoid it.

"Paul as in my father?" Deacon's eyes blazed with fury.

"That would be the one." JC confirmed for him.

"What does that have to do with the mood you're in?" Rayna asked him.

"I love Maddie and ya'll know that. So, normally I wouldn't say anythin' that could get her into trouble, but this needs to be said. Cash is no good for her. The only thing she is gonna do is get that girl in trouble. She stood there and told me tonight that Maddie is too good for me and I'm just a dime a dozen cowboy that no one is gonna have heard of in a decade. She also said that we are only holdin' her back. That's only words I coulda dealt with that, but it's Maddie too she's got her brainwashed into thinkin' I only want one thing from her." JC got it all off his chest.

"My ill-tempered friend ain't wrong 'bout that. Cash has some kinda powerful hold on Maddie. It's weird the way she is with her. She's either in love with Maddie or Maddie's talent. We've all noticed it. We just didn't know how to bring it up." Will agreed with him.

"Will, I'm sorry, brother, I didn't mean to take my shitty mood out on you." JC apologized.

"No worries, brother, I rather you take it out on me than on someone that would get you into trouble." Will embraced him.

"In the future if there's something concerning Maddie you think I need to know just tell me I'm not gonna bite your heads off." Rayna sighed.

"I'll tell you this much. I'm gonna kill that old son of a bitch just as soon as I get home this weekend." Deacon seethed.

"JC, thank you for bringin' this to our attention. We will take care of it. You should get on back to your room and sleep this off. Will, help him get there. And ya'll keep that ice on you." Rayna told them.

"Sure thing. Come on, Joe Frasier, let's get to our room." Will put his hand on JC's shoulder and walked him out the door.

"You gonna need anythin' else from me?" Max asked.

"No, you're good to go, Mad Max, thanks for the assist." Deacon patted him on the back.

"I'm not even gonna tell his sister 'bout this. If I don't tell her then I don't have to hear her." Max muttered to himself as he left.

"Deacon, what are we gonna do?" Rayna teared up. The tears were from her hormones. She was pissed off.

"We are gonna handle this together. Everythin' is gonna be ok. I'm so sorry, baby. I thought that Cash was good for her." Deacon put his arms around her and held her close. He felt responsible for this.

"Don't you dare blame yourself for this. I thought the same thing. She is gonna rue the day that she messed with our baby girl. I didn't fight her whole life to protect to let someone like Cash drag her down." Rayna had fire in her eyes. No one messed with her babies and got away with it.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I'm thinking that there are only four to nine chapters left in this story before we get to the sequel so we are in the home stretch now. Things are about to get a little angsty, but I promise you that it has a happy ending. And I'm not going to have things unpleasant for long. This is just long enough to fix the back half of season four. Until next time please review.


	92. Chapter 92

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 92

Paul stood out in the alley behind the diner smoking a cigarette when out of nowhere he found himself pushed up against the wall by his throat.

"You listen to me and you listen to me good you old son of a bitch. You stay the hell away from my family. I thought I made myself clear on that before, but apparently you mistook my kindness for an invitation." Deacon's nostrils flared with rage and his fist was cocked back.

"Go on and hit me I can't say that I don't deserve it. I will tell you this much though she came to me and after seein' what she's keepin' company with I couldn't turn her away. If I hadn't taken her under my wing this girl would have an even stronger hold on her than she already does. You got the right to hate me and not want me 'round your children, but if there was somethin' I could do to help you I wanted to do the right thing for change." Paul replied calmly.

"Son of a bitch, you make it so hard to stay mad at you when you talk sensibly like that." Deacon let go of him and ran his hand through his hair with a sigh.

"DJ, you've got a real problem on your hands with that Cash girl. She has Maddie so twisted up that she don't know which way is up. I'm an abuser myself so I know the signs. Now she ain't doin' nothin' physical to Maddie, but she damn sure is abusin' her mentally. Maddie just don't know it." Paul explained to him.

"Don't call me DJ. I know ok? I know and I'm workin' on it. The only thing is I can't forbid her from hangin' out with her or she'll just sneak 'round behind my back and do it. I know how'd you'd handle the situation and I can't go that route, so I don't know what to do." Deacon sighed loudly.

"I don't know what to do or say to help you. If I did I would do it or say it. I can't stand seein' the hold she has on Maddie. She don't even think for herself anymore. She looks to Cash before she answers." Paul took a drag off his cigarette. Even in all the commotion he'd kept his hold on it.

Deacon had a quick debate with himself before he spoke. "If you wanna help you can just be there like you have been. Give her some place to turn. Maybe you can make her see reason or shock her back to the right path. It's the best idea I can come up with right now."

"Ok, I can do that." Paul agreed. If Deacon was going to let him in even just a little bit he wasn't going to argue with it.

* * *

Rayna and Bucky sat in a conference room with Scarlett and Gunnar listening to their finished album. Scarlett and Gunnar looked at each other before looking at Rayna and Bucky trying to get a read on what they were thinking. Finally, the music stopped playing.

Rayna looked over at Bucky and then at Scarlett and Gunnar. She got to her feet and started clapping. "Wow, that's all I can say. That was amazing, ya'll."

"That was really, really great." Bucky agreed smilingly.

"Now we just pick a single right?" Gunnar asked.

"I know that this is gonna sound unconventional, but I think we should go with the last one. It's perfect." Rayna suggested.

"If that's what you think is best." Scarlett cast a glance in Gunnar's direction.

"Whatever is best for the band." Gunnar looked back at Scarlett.

"You guys still need to take care of licensing and copyrights. That's no big deal to take care of and I will handle it for you. I say this from a place of love, but get a manager. If this album gets as big as I think it will you're gonna need one." Bucky told them.

"We can do that." Scarlett replied.

"Yeah, we will get right on that." Gunnar agreed.

"I'm sure that Buck probably has someone in mind for you two. Let him get you a list of names and then you can work from there." Rayna chimed in.

"Of course." Scarlett said.

Rayna was getting a weird vibe off of them. "I think you two could do with some Man Wisdom from our resident artist mentor." She pressed the intercom button and dialed the extension that she wanted. "Hey, I need you to come in the conference room. You know what this is about." She said before hanging up.

Deacon walked in a moment later carrying a binder with him. "So, how'd the listening party go?"

"It went extremely well we even picked a single." Rayna answered him.

"I couldn't tell that by the long faces these two are sportin' right now." Deacon gestured to Scarlett and Gunnar.

"Yeah, I noticed that too and I thought that they could do with some of your famous man wisdom." Rayna replied.

Deacon opened up his binder and sat it down in front of the duo. "Go on and take a look at that."

"You and Tequila, Whiskey Lullaby, and Old Habits. These are all songs off of your and Rayna's new album." Gunnar said after flipping through the pages.

"Right. What else do you notice?" Deacon inquired.

"Both your names are on the by line." Scarlett piped up.

"That's right. If you keep flippin' through that binder, you'll see that all of our songs are like that. From the first song we wrote together to the most recent." Deacon confirmed.

"It has never mattered to us who wrote which song. They are all ours. For instance, Deacon wrote most of You and Tequila and Postcard From Mexico. The Rivers Between Us and At the End of the Day I wrote the majority of those. I can't even begin to tell you who wrote more of No One Will Ever Love You. That's an ongoing argument 'til this day." Rayna laughed.

"Exactly, it doesn't matter who put more work in on what song. It's both your success and ain't one of you shinin' more than the other. Sometimes you just gotta take turns bein' the star. It doesn't make either of you inferior it just means sometimes one of you is gonna have a better idea than the other." Deacon added.

"Both our names on everything?" Gunnar suggested.

"Yeah, that's the only way to go, babe." Scarlett agreed with him.

"My work here is done then." Deacon collected his binder.

"You two need to keep tonight open you're coming over to the house for dinner. I don't wanna hear an argument outta ya'll. I don't plan on cooking so you have no worries." Rayna told them while she was thinking about it.

"Ok, we will be there." Gunnar was never going to turn down a meal.

"I gotta ask. True or false Jimmy threw down on Will and then they laughed it off?" Scarlett asked.

"We ain't talkin' 'bout that. I got beat up by Jimmy's sister for lettin' him behave that way." Deacon replied.

"Oh stop, Hailey did not beat you up." Rayna rolled her eyes at him. "Yes it's true. You really don't wanna know why. Let me ask ya'll a question. What do you think of Cash?"

"I know absolutely nothing." Gunnar claimed innocence.

"I ain't said nothin' partially 'cause my momma is datin' her daddy and 'cause I didn't wanna push Maddie further to her, but since you asked I'll give you my opinion. I don't know what that girl's deal is, but she seems to have some type of weird obsession with Maddie. I don't know if it's her talent or if she is in love with her, but it ain't normal at all." Scarlett gave her opinion.

"Apparently she said some things to Jimmy and that's why he was in such a bad mood the other night. Deacon and I aren't really sure what to do about it because we both know what will happen if we forbid Maddie to see Cash." Rayna explained.

"There's not a whole lot you can do other than be there to catch her when she falls. I went through a similar rebellious phase. It didn't last long and I didn't do anythin' horrible, but I know that I put poor mawmaw through more hell durin' that time." Scarlett offered with a shrug.

"Did you know that Maddie has been talkin' to Paul?" Deacon asked her.

"Uncle Deacon, I'm sorry we dropped the ball. I never dreamed in a million years that she'd go to him." Scarlett apologized.

"Stop it, this isn't on you. We don't blame you and Gunnar for Maddie's behavior. She's old enough to know better. That's part of what scares me about Cash. She does Maddie's thinking for her and my daughter doesn't use the brain she was born with. She knew damn well that Deacon wouldn't be ok with that, but she still did it anyway." Rayna dismissed her apology.

Deacon checked the time on his phone. "Ray, we need to go pick them girls up from school.'

"Yeah you're right let's get goin'." Rayna agreed with him.

* * *

Rayna and Deacon had Maddie and Daphne sitting on the couch while the boys played in the floor. Of course they'd had to wait for Maddie to get back from a writing date with Cash.

"What's this about? Did we do something wrong?" Daphne asked.

"Not at all, Squirt. I'll let your momma tell you." Deacon smiled at her.

"Well, ya'll are gonna be big sisters again. I'm pregnant." Rayna told them quickly.

"Really?" Daphne was actually excited.

"Oh joy another terror." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"I'm really glad that you're excited, Daphne. Maddie, it won't be that bad." Deacon replied.

"No it won't be that bad for long. Thank God I'm outta here soon." Maddie grumbled.

"Daphne, can you take your brothers upstairs and watch them for a little while please?" Rayna had had enough of her oldest child's attitude.

"Sure I can." Daphne gathered the boys and took them upstairs.

"What did I do this time?" Maddie sighed.

"Listen, princess I know that this might be hard for you, but I promise you it don't mean I love you any less." Deacon reached out to put his hand on her knee and she pulled back.

"Maddie, what's with that?" Rayna asked her.

"You should ask him he knows why." Maddie snipped.

"I'll come out and ask you then. Why have you been goin' to see Paul behind my back?" Deacon asked her.

"He's my grandpa, dad, I should be able to see him whenever I want to. That didn't give you the right to do what you did to him though. I know it was you so don't try to deny it." Maddie spat back.

"Maddie," Deacon tried to take her hand and she pulled away again. "Oh, I see you're scared of me now."

"Deacon, let me talk to her and then I'll come get you." Rayna rubbed his leg.

"Yeah, I'll be in the music room." Deacon pecked Rayna's lips before he walked off.

"I don't know how you let him touch you knowing what he's capable of." Maddie shook her head.

"Maddie, I have no idea what you're talking about. Why don't you tell me what you think happened?" Rayna suggested.

"I'm talking about Deacon. He attacked Paul just for talking to me. You should have seen the bruises on his neck and shoulders." Maddie explained.

"Deacon? That is your dad and he loves you very much. Don't let him hear you call him by his name that would hurt him a lot." Rayna told her patiently.

"That's what you're concerned about? You're not concerned about the fact that he can fly off the handle and do that to another person?" Maddie asked in disbelief.

"Maddie, you're talking about something that you don't understand. It took him a long time to tell me everything that Paul did to him and he has sugarcoated it for you to make it easier to swallow. No it doesn't concern me at all. There's a lot of water under that bridge that neither of us will ever be able to understand. Whatever that was is between the two of them. I promise you this Paul did a lot worse than leave a few bruises on your daddy. He left scars that have lasted a lifetime. Do you think for a second if I thought he was a danger to us that I'd be with him? The answer to that is no. I don't care how much I love him I wouldn't put you, your sister, and your brothers at risk. I'll say this Deacon is a person that feels things deeply and he acts impulsively sometimes. I know a certain daughter of his that is the exact same way." Rayna lectured her.

"What if he loses control and starts drinking again? He made it thirteen years the last time and it didn't take much to make him slip. What if he gets drunk and almost kills you again?" Maddie questioned heatedly.

"Maddie, I lied to him for thirteen years and to him that was everything. Damn it I know that I'm the one who allowed the blame to be laid on him for that accident, but it wasn't on him. It was on me I was the one driving not him. I wasn't paying attention I was trying to argue with him. I've seen him look broken and defeated a lot of times in my life, but that was the worst. What made it even worse was the fact I was the one who had done it to him. I'm not making excuses for him. I'm just hitting you with a dose of the truth." Rayna tried to get her to see reason.

"Whatever, mom." Maddie rolled her eyes again.

"Not whatever. You have no reason to fear your daddy you never have and you never will. He would die before he put his hands on one of us. He's a hell of a lot stronger than you're giving him credit for right now. He gets up every day and he battles the urge to take a drink because he knows he'd lose us if he did. I robbed you two of a lot of time together don't deny yourself what you have left. You keep this up and you will lose your relationship with him and that would just be sad for you. Because no matter what he will always love you. I'll say this one last thing. The only time I've ever seen that man raise his hand to anyone was to defend me. So you think about that." Rayna got up and left her there to think about things.

* * *

Deacon came home from the grocery store with the boys to find Daphne sitting alone in the living room with a bunch of trash around her. Rayna was out doing something work related. "Hey, Squirt, do you think that maybe you could clean up your mess? Other people have to live here too."

"I'll do it." Daphne called back to him.

"Now, please. You don't want the twin terrors to come in there and make the mess worse." Deacon kept his tone light. He sat the boys down on the floor to let them play.

"This stinks. I can't do anything and Maddie gets away with everything." Daphne said. Her eyes got big as soon as the words left her mouth.

"What is Maddie gettin' away with?" Deacon asked her. He had a confused look on his face. Things had been tense between the two of them over the weekend. Everyone with the exception of Maddie had been excited about the news of a new baby.

"Nothing, dad, just forget that I said anything." Daphne covered quickly.

"Daph, you know the rule in this house. You won't get in trouble if you just tell the truth." Deacon spoke to her patiently.

"I heard Maddie talking to Cash earlier and she was gonna sneak her in to play some bar tonight. That's all I know. I'm sure that Maddie probably put the name of it on her social media somewhere." Daphne felt better to get that off her chest.

"I have a way to find her. Squirt, will you be ok here alone with the boys for fifteen minutes? I've gotta go get your sister. I'm gonna call your mawmaw right now and it won't take her long to get here. You lock that door behind me and you don't open it for anyone that you don't know." Deacon pulled her into a big hug. "I love you so much. You did the right thing tellin' me."

"I love you too, daddy. The boys and I will be fine until someone can get here." Daphne hugged him tight.

"That's my good girl. We just have to save your sister from herself right now." Deacon paused to kiss the boys before he left. He was on the phone with his mother as he walked out the door.

Deacon used the GPS on Maddie's phone to track her to a bar that she had no business being in. When he walked in she was up on stage singing. He made up his mind to let her finish. He could see that she was unharmed and that was all that really mattered to him. That calm rational thinking went out the window the minute he saw some creep put his hand on Maddie's leg. That coupled with the sexually suggestive lyrics she was singing flipped the switch in his head.

He jumped up on the stage and pushed the guy back. "Get your damn hands off of her she's only sixteen." He turned to Maddie and took her guitar off of her. "Come on, Maddie, we are leavin'."

"No, I'm not going anywhere with you, you're embarrassing. Dad, just stop I'm fine." Maddie argued.

"Maddie, get off this stage and get out to the truck now." Deacon seethed.

Maddie just gave up and went out with him.

Deacon loaded her guitar up for her and got her in the truck. He turned his sights on Cash who was standing there looking innocent. "You stay the hell away from my daughter and I mean it."

"I'm not gonna abandon her like everyone else in her life. She's got a fire inside her that you're just trying to douse." Cash argued with him.

"Hey, I'm her father, damn it. You don't get to tell me how to parent. Stay away from my daughter. You're just gonna get her into trouble." Deacon had sense enough to walk away before he really lost it.

The truck ride home was filled with silence. Maddie didn't want to talk and Deacon had no clue what to say to her.

* * *

"Juliette, I just don't know. If you would have asked me a month ago I would have said that she was ready for something like that. Now I'm not so sure. Look, I gotta go I'll call you back later and let you know." Rayna hung up the phone as she came into the kitchen the next morning.

Deacon stood at the kitchen counter staring down into his coffee cup. "Mornin', babe."

Rayna went over and wrapped her arms around him. "You did the best that you knew how. You shouldn't beat yourself up about that. Teddy would have reacted the same way. Hell, do you know what my daddy would have done? I just hope she's ok and she's not too shaken up from that guy pawing her."

"I assure you that she's fine with that. I'm the bad guy right now. I'm the embarrassin' dad who has no chill. Those were some of her words for me once we got home last night. I told Cash to stay the hell away from her. I know that we weren't gonna do that, but this was the last straw." Deacon leaned against her.

"I completely agree with you, Deacon. You're an amazing daddy, babe, and all these kids are lucky to have you." Rayna held on to him just a little bit tighter.

"Thanks, baby," Deacon kissed the top of her head.

"So that was Juliette on the phone. She wanted to know if maybe Maddie could come out and open for her this summer. I think it might be a good way to get her out from under Cash's influence and under a better one. What do you think?" Rayna asked him. The irony of thinking that Juliette Barnes would be a good influence on her daughter wasn't lost on her.

"I think that may be the best thing we can do for her right now. I don't know what else to do." Deacon sighed.

"Where is she right now anyway?" Rayna asked.

"She's up in her room. I didn't bother wakin' her for school today. It was one fight that I didn't feel like havin' with her. I took Daphne to school and momma took the boys over to her house she wanted to spend some time with them. And I think she thought that we needed to talk to Maddie alone." Deacon replied.

Maddie came into the kitchen and she made a sound of disgust in the back of her throat. "I should have known that you two would be down here all hugged up. No matter what he does you don't see him for what he is."

"Maddie, how are you this morning? Are you ok? You don't feel violated do you?" Rayna ignored her last comment.

"I'm fine, mom, but your husband is psycho." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"You know I just got off the phone with Juliette and she wants you to open for her when I go out on maternity leave. But if you keep up with that attitude that's not gonna be happening." Rayna told her evenly.

"Of course not. You just want to hold me back and keep me singing stupid kid songs about unicorns and rainbows with my baby sister. You know what? I'm out of here. I can't deal with you two anymore." Maddie grabbed the keys to her Jeep and stormed out of the house.

"I can go after her." Deacon offered.

"No, let her go cool off. That's what I have to do to you sometimes when you get in one of these moods. She will be back." Rayna called him off.

* * *

When Maddie hadn't come home by later that afternoon Rayna and Deacon started making the rounds of places that she could have gone and of course they came up empty. They finally ended up on Cash's doorstep together. Cash answered the door when she knocked.

"I thought I told you earlier that she's not here." Cash directed that comment at Rayna.

"Cash, it's ok, I'll talk to them." Maddie came to the door.

"Ok, I'm right inside if you need me." Cash squeezed her shoulder and went back into the house.

"Maddie, baby girl, please come home. Whatever it is you need we can work this out." Deacon pleaded with her.

"We have promised you that you can tell us anything you just have to talk to us." Rayna added.

"Why? So you can just lie to me some more? Cash found out about the deal with Edgehill that you killed. It wasn't long after that that you decided to sign me and Daphne to Highway Sixty-five." Maddie countered.

"That's somethin' that you would need to ask Teddy 'bout. He's the one who signed you to Edgehill. Without our consent I might add. He didn't have the authority to do that. Did you really wanna be under Jeff's thumb? You've met him you know what he's like." Deacon tried to make her see reason.

"Why wouldn't he have the authority to do that? He was my dad before you were after all." Maddie purposefully chose the words that she knew would hurt Deacon the most.

"Maddie, we were just trying to protect you from the mess that Teddy had made of his life and it all came out anyway. Jeff blackmailed him into it." Rayna explained. She knew that it would be a stalemate between Deacon and Maddie they were too much alike for either of them to come out on top.

"I don't know why I would even consider believing anything that you have to say. You're the one who lied to me my whole life about who my father was. The lawyers say that I have a pretty good case anyway." Maddie shrugged her shoulders.

"A good case for what?" Deacon asked her.

"For emancipation." Maddie said and then she slammed the door in their faces.

"Deacon, what do we do?" Rayna looked at him teary eyed as they walked back to the truck.

"Now, you let me call the police like you wouldn't earlier." Deacon retorted.

"Deacon, I don't want to do that to her. I don't wanna make her just another statistic in a file." Rayna got into the truck.

"If this is done right there won't be a file. I know a guy. You know how I work at the Mile Marker when we're short staffed. I made friends with this officer that works that beat. Let me call him and see what he can do. If nothin' else Lamar can make this go away." Deacon laid some logic on her.

"Ok, babe, do what you think is best. My way clearly isn't working right now." Rayna gave him permission to do what he thought he had to.

Deacon dialed a number on his cell phone as he headed home. "Lincoln, this is Deacon. I need a huge favor from you. My teenage daughter ran away from home. I need you to bring her back. I also need you to do this without leavin' a paper trail if at all possible." He listened to what the person on the other end of the line had to say. He gave him Cash's address. "Thanks, Lincoln, I really appreciate this." He looked over at Rayna briefly.

"What did he say?" Rayna asked.

"He said that it was no problem and he will have Maddie home as soon as possible." Deacon informed her.

"Oh thank, God." Rayna gripped his hand tightly.

They had been home for about fifteen minutes when Maddie's Jeep pulled into the driveway. There's a loud knock on the door.

Deacon jumped up to answer the door. Maddie stood on the door stoop next to a uniformed police officer.

"Here she is, Mr. Claybourne." Lincoln Hoyt was a tall athletically built man in his thirties. He had coal black hair and deep brown eyes.

"Thanks for bringin' her back, Linc. I really appreciate this I know that you stuck you're neck out doin' this for me." Deacon shook his hand.

"It's no problem I was a teenager once not that long ago. I rather save her from doin' somethin' stupid then worry 'bout the paperwork." Lincoln shook hands with him.

"Maddie, you better get on in there and let your momma know that you're home." Deacon addressed his daughter.

"Whatever, Deacon," Maddie rolled her eyes and stomped past him.

"Try not to take it too personally she's almost seventeen and I remember what my sister was like at that age. She was a holy terror she put my parents through absolute hell. She ended up becomin' a decorated war hero. Just remember that there is a light at the end of the tunnel." Lincoln tried to cheer him up.

"I'm tryin' to keep in mind that this is only a phase and it too shall pass. She makes it hard sometimes." Deacon replied.

"Did you want us to do anythin' 'bout the woman she was stayin' with?" Lincoln asked him.

"Maybe give her a really good talkin' to. She's my sister's boyfriend's daughter and I don't wanna take legal action against her if I can help it." Deacon said after thinking it over for a minute.

"We'll go give her a good scare for you. Don't you worry none, Deacon." Lincoln put on his best mean face to illustrate his point.

"You go do that, man. Again I really appreciate this." Deacon couldn't say that enough. He was relieved to have his daughter under the same roof again.

"I would do this for anyone who asked. It ain't just 'cause you've got a few hit songs on the radio or 'cause you give me free food. You know that I got a little girl at home that's 'bout the same age as your boys. I'd want someone to do for her what I did for Maddie tonight. Hell, now I'm terrified I'm a single father her momma flew the coop. If yours can act like that havin' two parents at home what's mine gonna be like?" Lincoln did a full body shake.

"With you for a daddy I think that she will turn out just fine. You're a good cop and an even better man. I ain't gonna forget this favor you did for me anytime soon. Anythin' you want you don't hesitate to ask me for it." Deacon clapped him on the back.

"Will do, I best get goin' and give that Cash a good scare." Lincoln waved as he left.

Deacon shut and locked the door behind him. He turned out the lights and made sure everything else was locked up for the night before he made his way upstairs. He found Rayna with her pillow and blanket outside of Maddie's room.

"Ray, what are you doin'?"

"I'm sleeping outside her door in case she gets anymore bright ideas to run away. I let Elvis out in the yard that way if she tries to make an escape he will bark and stop her." Rayna was dead serious.

"How 'bout this. You go in that room with her and lay down next to her. It ain't good for you or the baby to be layin' in that floor." Deacon suggested.

"That's a much better idea. That's why I married you, babe." Rayna gave him a big hug and a kiss.

"Well, at least the truth is finally comin' out now." Deacon made a weak joke. He bent down and placed a kiss on her belly. "You help momma keep an eye on sissy tonight, Peanut. Daddy is gonna be up walkin' the house all night, 'cause there ain't no way I'm gonna be able to sleep."

"Try to sleep if you can." Rayna told him before she marched into Maddie's room and crawled into bed with her ignoring the cold shoulder she got in response.

* * *

Deacon was still up the next morning when a knock sounded on the door. He went to the door and answered it. "Can I help you with somethin'?" He asked the person on the other side of the door. He'd never seen this man before in his life.

"Mr. Deacon Claybourne?" He asked.

"Yeah, that's me." Deacon answered.

He handed him an envelope. "You can consider yourself served."

"Deacon, babe, who's at the door? What's going on?" Rayna went to stand by his side sleepily.

"Ms. Rayna Jaymes?" The man asked.

"That would be me." Rayna confirmed.

He handed her another envelope. "You can also consider yourself served. You folks have a nice day."

Deacon shut the door and tore the envelope open. "You've gotta be fuckin' kiddin' me."

"What's yours say? Though I have a pretty damn good idea." Rayna asked him even though she didn't have to ask.

"It's from Maddie's lawyer this is a notice to appear in court in forty-eight hours. She's tryin' to get emancipated." Deacon crumpled up the sheet of paper and threw it across the room.

"Deacon, she has no case and you know it. Let's let her grandstand and feel better about herself. There's no way in hell a judge is gonna let anyone that impulsive be responsible for themselves. This looks like exactly what it is a teenager havin' a full blown toddler melt down to get her own way." Rayna wasn't taking this seriously for a minute. Well she was, but she didn't think that her daughter had a shot at winning.

"You can think that way you ain't the one of us that's got a closet full of really awful shit that you've done. That'd be me." Deacon sighed and ran his hand over his beard. He couldn't be responsible for Rayna losing Maddie. Not after everything that she had done to protect that girl. It would kill him if her reasons for keeping her from him turned out to be true.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Alright, before ya'll tar and feather me for this please remember that I said things were only gonna be dark and angsty for a minute and that I have to fix the back half of season four. To do that I've gotta tackle that awful courtroom scene. I promise that there is going to be a different outcome and the rest of the story is gonna be light and happy just bear with me for this next chapter. Until next time please review.


	93. Chapter 93

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 93

Rayna stood in the mirror looking herself over. She had to look extra perfect today. Not that she didn't every day, but today it was important that she come across looking like a mother rather than a superstar.

"You're a good momma, don't you doubt that, Ray." Deacon was in the process of knotting his tie.

"Then how come I'm facing our daughter in court today?" Rayna asked him teary eyed. Her pregnancy hormones weren't helping any at all with this.

"Because she's little Deacon and she doesn't think before she acts. You said it yourself and the lawyers said it she has no chance of winnin' this thing. She looks like a spoiled brat who didn't get her way so now she's throwin' a fit." Deacon tried his best to calm her fears.

"Do me a favor and try not to sound so pissed off when we go into court today. It isn't gonna do us any favors with the judge." Rayna couldn't help getting her dander up with him a little bit. If only he hadn't flown off the handle in the bar then maybe this wouldn't be happening. It wasn't fair and she knew it so she shook the thought from her head. What they needed right now was to present a strong united front.

"I'll work on it. I can't help bein' just a little pissed off with her. I know that a lot of this is Cash, but some of it is Maddie too. She coulda put a stop to this, but she chose not to think for herself. She's old enough to know right from wrong. I'm even ok with them draggin' me through the mud in that courtroom today as long as it means that girl is gonna stay home where she belongs. She's been stayin' with momma the past couple days and I miss that girl like crazy." Deacon refused to believe that he wouldn't come out the other end of this with his family intact.

"You're right, we better get going. The last thing we want is to be late for this thing. Daphne is at school and the boys are with the nanny downstairs. Everyone is present and accounted for. Everything is going to be fine." Rayna took a deep breath.

"Let's go bring our little girl home, babe." Deacon took her hand.

* * *

The gallery of the courtroom was packed with their friends and family. Some of whom would be called as witnesses and some there just to show their support.

"Emancipation is a serious request and as a judge it is my solemn duty to hear both sides of the story and weigh what's best not only for the child, but for the rest of the family as well. The decision to break up a family is no easy task and it is not one that I take lightly. At this time, I will hear arguments from the plaintiff." Judge Harriet Light called court to order.

Family court was a little different than criminal or civil court. Here there was no jury for the lawyers to play up to. It was a single judge that they had to impress with their arguments.

"Your Honor, as our first witness we would like to call Maddie Claybourne to the stand." Maddie's lawyer stood up and announced.

Maddie got up on the stand and was sworn in. She answered questions from her lawyer and from Deacon and Rayna's lawyer before she was allowed to step down.

Rayna and Deacon both took the stand after that. They had pretty much decimated any case that Maddie could have had.

"Maddie, this isn't working it's time to go to Plan B." Her lawyer told her.

"I don't know. Maybe this wasn't a good idea. I mean look at my parents. I don't think I can do it." Maddie stammered.

"That's right look at your parents they are the ones who want to hold you back. It's a little white lie for your freedom. If you want it bad enough you'll fudge the truth. Is it worth waiting almost a year and half to have that freedom or do you want it now? If they really cared about you they would give you what you wanted." Cash whispered in her ear.

"Ok, let's do it." Maddie finally relented.

"Your Honor, at this time we would like to recall Maddie Claybourne to the stand." Her lawyer spoke up.

Maddie took the stand once more.

"Maddie, who is that man sitting next to your mother today?" Her lawyer asked.

"That's my father, Deacon Claybourne." Maddie answered.

"I see and have you always known him to be your father?" She asked.

"No for the first thirteen years of my life I believed Teddy Conrad, my mother's ex-husband to be my father." Maddie was firm in her answer.

"And why is that?" She asked another question.

"My mother concealed the fact that he was my father because of his drinking problem. She thought it would be better if I believed Teddy were my father." Maddie didn't flinch when she saw both her parents' reactions.

"Would you say that your father is a violent man? Or can you think of any instances where he resorted to violence?" She went on.

"My father has some kind of hang up my grandfather and he doesn't want him around us. He got really mad when he found out that I'd been spending time with him and he pushed my grandpa up against a wall so hard that he left bruises. Another time I was performing on stage and he drug me off." Maddie looked down at her hands.

Deacon bowed his head. He knew that this was coming. He just wasn't as prepared as he'd thought.

"Just one more question. Are you scared of your father?" The lawyer asked.

"Come on, Maddie, tell the truth, sweetheart." Rayna muttered to herself quietly.

Maddie looked around the courtroom first at her mom and dad and then at Cash. She took a deep breath before she answered. "Yes, and I would feel unsafe living in the same house with him." She broke down crying at the end of that sentence. She couldn't bear to look in her father's direction it wasn't lost on her that she had just blown her relationship with him up.

Deacon's shoulders sagged and he covered his face with his hands. All those times he'd sworn that he would never be his father and then this happened.

Rayna reached over and rubbed his back. In that moment a part of her wanted to wring her daughter's neck. There was no reason for her to hurt her father that way. She would have never even dreamed of saying that about her own father and he had thrown her out of the house at sixteen.

Their lawyer jumped to his feet. "If it please the court. We have a report here prepared by a social worker documenting the safety of the home and its inhabitants for Your Honor's consideration." He held up a document.

"I will take that into consideration." Judge Light signaled for her bailiff to retrieve the report for her. "Someone call a witness."

"Your Honor, at this time we would like to call Paul Claybourne to the stand." Maddie's lawyer called their next witness.

Paul got up from the gallery and walked to the stand.

"State your full name for the record please." Judge Light requested.

"Deacon Paul Claybourne Jr, ma'am." Paul gave his full name. That was why he always called Deacon DJ.

Maddie cast a quick glance at her father out of the corner of her eye and her posture straightened in surprise. She'd had no clue that they shared a first name.

"Mr. Claybourne, I only have one question for you. At any time in recent memory has your son put his hands on you with such force as to cause bodily harm and bruising?" She asked him.

Paul crossed and uncrossed his legs and fidgeted around the stand for a moment to get comfortable. "No, if you're talkin' 'bout the bruises on my neck and shoulders I rather not say in mixed company how I got those, but I'm sure a smart thing like you could figure that out all on your own. Let me tell you what my son has done to me though my son gave me a third of his liver when I was all outta options and that's after I was as physically abusive to him as you're tryin' to make him out to be right now." For once in his life he had done the right thing.

"No further questions for this witness." She said. That hadn't gone the way they had planned for it to at all. "I would like to call JC Grayson to the stand, Your Honor."

JC had been called back from tour for this. He got up on the stand.

"State you name for the record." Judge Light told him.

"James Clay Grayson," JC folded his hands together.

"I just have a couple of questions for you." Maddie's lawyer stated. "What is your relationship to Maddie Claybourne?"

"I'm her boyfriend." JC glared over at Cash.

"In your opinion do you think Maddie is ready to be out on her own?" She asked.

JC licked his lips before he answered. "One hundred percent absolutely not. Maddie is smart, she is capable, and she's kind, but that's only when she thinkin' for herself. I love Maddie and I know this is probably gonna cost me her, but I rather know that she's gonna be loved and taken care of and not be with her then be with her and have to worry 'bout what road Cash is gonna lead her down. This whole debacle here that ain't Maddie. That's on that bleach blonde tramp sittin' back there whisperin' in her ear tellin' her what to say. Excuse my language, but that was worth the contempt of court charge."

"No further questions." She said quickly she couldn't wait to get him off the stand.

JC got off the stand and he didn't bother to make eye contact with Maddie.

She called Will, Rhett, Scarlett, Gunnar, and Mack only to get similar responses from them. The only person who provided any bit of help was Cash. When she saw things weren't working out quite how she wanted them to she changed course. "We'd like to recall Deacon Claybourne to the stand."

Deacon took the stand again. He listened as the lawyer ran through a laundry list of his wrongdoings. Each time he had to answer yes it sounded like another nail in his coffin. His shoulders stooped a little lower with each question.

"Doesn't she have enough? Does she have to keep hitting him that hard?" Maddie whispered to Cash. She couldn't stand seeing the fight leave her dad a little at a time.

"She's just doing her job. I told you it would be hard, but it will be worth it." Cash whispered back.

Once Maddie's lawyer was finished steamrolling over Deacon Rayna's lawyer took another turn with him. He asked him questions that would help clarify everything the other lawyer had just dredged up.

"Mr. Claybourne, have you ever so much as raised a hand to one of your children?" He asked.

"No, I have never and I will never." Deacon answered firmly.

"Why is that?" He asked.

"Because I would never put one of my children through what I went through as a child. From the ages of about six to thirteen my father was physically abusive to me." Deacon hated that he had to air that out in court.

"Can you give us specific examples or show us evidence of this alleged abuse?" He asked him.

Deacon snorted at that. "Can I give you examples or show you evidence? I could write a book filled with the things he did to me. My body is like an old roadmap of scars left over from him." He took off his jacket and rolled up the cuff of his shirt. "You can barely see it now, but he put a cigarette out on me right there." He pointed to the spot. He undid his tie and unbuttoned the top button on shirt. "Right there is a scar from his belt buckle. A belt buckle is typically blunt imagine the force he would have had to hit an eight-year-old little boy with to break the skin."

Maddie stood up so fast that her chair hit the railing with a loud thud. "Stop it, please stop. He doesn't like to talk about this. It hurts him to talk about it. I lied before I didn't mean it I'm not scared of him. My daddy would never do anything to hurt me." She broke down crying.

Deacon got down off the stand and rushed to his daughter and took her in his arms while she cried. "Shh, you're ok, daddy's here, daddy's got ya." He rocked her back and forth gently and kissed the top of her head while she cried into his chest.

Judge Light banged her gavel. "I will have order in this courtroom."

"Your Honor, please." Rayna's lawyer pointed at Deacon and Maddie.

Judge Light could sympathize she had children of her own. "I'll allow it. At this time I'd like to call a thirty minute recess while I deliberate my decision." She banged her gavel and dismissed court for the time being.

"What does that mean? I thought this wasn't going to happen this fast?" Rayna questioned her lawyer.

"Trust me, Rayna, this is a very good thing for everyone involved. She heard what we said and she heard what Maddie said, but actions speak louder than words. Look at your husband and daughter right now." He pointed over to where Deacon still stood holding Maddie in his arms protectively.

Rayna got up and went over to them, but she stopped to kiss her father-in-law's cheek on the way. "Thank you for finally doin' right by your boy, Paul." She joined Deacon in holding Maddie.

"I shouldn't have done this, I'm sorry." Maddie apologized tearfully.

"Maddie, no matter what it's gonna be ok." Rayna whispered to her. She didn't know why the judge was bothering with this, but time would tell.

"You've got us." Deacon assured her.

Maddie nodded her head weakly.

"Look at me, baby girl, we need to fix your makeup you look a mess." Rayna took a tissue and blotted her face clean. "There we go much better." She gave her a small smile.

Judge Light returned to the courtroom a half hour later. "Everyone take your seats."

Rayna and Deacon returned to their seats.

"As I said at the beginning of these proceedings. Emancipation isn't a route to be taken lightly and then if it is decided that is the best course of action it should only be taken in the extreme circumstances of neglect or abuse. After hearing the testimony and reading the report from the social worker I have come to the decision that in this case an emancipation would serve no one. As a matter of fact I would be doing a disservice to this young lady if I were to remove her from the home of her obviously loving parents." Judge Light ruled on the matter.

Deacon and Rayna embraced each other.

"Ms. Claybourne, it is the opinion of the court that you did nothing more than waste my valuable time and efforts when they could have been directed to a case with more urgency. You basically used the judicial process to throw a temper tantrum like a toddler, because you didn't get your way. Your parents want to protect you and want you to be a normal teenager without the added pressures of being a full time artist as well. They haven't abused or neglected you. Some children should be so lucky as to be neglected that way. I won't even get started about what you got up here and said about your father who is himself a survivor of domestic violence. You were so ready to lie and throw him under the bus just to get your way. The way that you instantly went into his arms tells me that you're not afraid of him. I'm not sure how much of what you said up on the stand was you and how much was your friend. You looked at her before you answered every question." Judge Light went on.

Maddie shrank back under her intense gaze.

"Mr. and Mrs. Claybourne, I want you to know that the next part of my ruling has nothing to do with your parenting and it is just a means to teach a lesson." Judge Light leveled her gaze on Rayna and Deacon who both nodded.

"This court hear by issues a no contact order between Maddie Claybourne and Rayna and Deacon Claybourne for a period of two weeks. Young lady, you think that you can handle things out on your own let's see how well you do without momma and daddy's money to keep you up. I understand that you're an artist under contract to Highway Sixty-five. I am temporarily putting a hold on that contract and I'm ordering that you be given a portion of your royalties to live on for the next two weeks. That being said I'm not an unreasonable woman I'll give you a few minutes to say your goodbyes." She really threw the book at Maddie for the stunt she had pulled. She wanted her to see just how good she really had it.

A few tears made their way down Maddie's face.

"I would also suggest that you find yourself some new friends. You need to take this time to think long and hard about how much your parents truly love you. You could have done irreparable damage to your relationship with them today, but luckily I was able to prevent that and you came to your senses. You will always be their child, but you still have another year and half of benefitting from their love and experience before you have to face this cold, hard world alone. Court is adjourned." Judge Light banged her gavel. "One more thing. Mr. Grayson, approach the bench."

JC got up and walked to the front of the courtroom. "Yes, ma'am?"

Judge Light covered the microphone with her hand. "In the future you can't refer to someone as a bleach blonde tramp on the stand no matter how true that may be. I'll let you off with a warning this time." She whispered lowly to him. Cash had really rubbed her the wrong way.

"I understand, ma'am." JC did his best to hide a smirk. He wasn't sorry in the least bit. He would say the same thing again if given the chance.

"Do try to look contrite, Mr. Grayson." Judge Light bit her lip.

"Yes ma'am." JC replied.

Rayna and Deacon walked over to Maddie and hugged her tightly.

"I'm gonna write you a check and pack up some your things. I will have Uncle Rhett drop that off for you later." Rayna wiped tears away from her face.

"Your Honor, is that alright? My brother can drop off a check and some clothes for her?" Deacon asked.

"That'll be fine. The no contact order is just with you two." Judge Light smiled.

"Mom, I'm gonna be fine. I can handle myself for two weeks." Maddie assured her tearfully.

"I know you can. I just didn't want this for you. I'm so sorry that I failed you." Rayna apologized.

"You didn't fail me." Maddie reassured her.

Deacon stepped back a minute to let those two have their moment. What she had said about him up there on the stand was starting to sink in. He didn't know what he'd ever done to her to make her feel that way about him.

"You didn't either, dad." Maddie turned to face him.

"You just take these two weeks and get your head right. Ok?" Deacon gave her another quick hug. "I uh, I have to go." He walked away.

"Mom?" Maddie watched him go.

"You hurt him, Maddie. That man loves you so much and you said the one thing that you knew would break his heart. When the time comes you're gonna need to ask his forgiveness." Rayna told her. As relieved as she was to have her daughter coming home she was pissed at her.

"I understand." Maddie nodded her head.

"I should go. I will see you in two weeks." Rayna hugged her again before she left her standing there.

* * *

"How could she do it, Ray? How could she get up on that stand and say that she was scared of me and that she wouldn't feel safe with me?" Deacon asked as they drove to pick up Daphne.

"Honey, she didn't mean it she was only saying it to get her way. I know that she said the thing that would hurt you the most though. Baby, I felt so sorry for you and there wasn't a damn thing I could do to stop it." Rayna reached over and took his hand.

"I'm sorry I'm the one who promised you I would never be my father and I went and made her think I was like him." Deacon shook his head.

"No you didn't. Maddie just knew which buttons to push. I'll say this for him though, Paul actually stepped up and did the right thing for a change." Rayna replied.

"That was somethin' I guess." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, Maddie doesn't think that about you even if she said it. And I can tell you that Daphne, Deac, and Jayme all think that the sun rises and sets because their daddy makes it so. And this baby will think the same thing." Rayna moved his hand to her stomach. "Say hi to the Peanut, daddy."

"Hey, Peanut." Deacon pulled up in front of the school. "She didn't even stop to think the effect that this could have had on her brothers and sister. If the judge hadn't seen through her you may have had to choose between me and then. They could have been removed from our home."

"Babe, it didn't come to that. Don't even think about it. I'll tell you what I'm gonna do. I'm taking the next two weeks off and I'm gonna have Juliette offer her that spot opening for her. At least then we know that she's with someone that we trust. And we don't have to interact with her even though your tour and that tour will be at the same stops." Rayna thought out loud.

"Yeah, that sounds good to me." Deacon said absent-mindedly.

Daphne opened the back door of the truck and climbed in. "Where's Maddie? Is she gonna come home yet?"

"Maddie, isn't coming home just yet, but you will see her soon." Rayna answered her.

"Does she not wanna come home because I told on her?" Daphne worried with her bottom lip.

"Squirt, that ain't true at all. Maddie is gettin' older and she's gonna do things that you don't always understand. Like I said sometimes we are gonna have to save her from herself and she ain't always gonna like that." Deacon reassured her.

"I'm sorry this is all my fault. I didn't mean to make her mad." Daphne replied.

"Baby, girl this has nothin' to do with you. This is just Maddie bein' Maddie. I know that it's hard to understand right now, but one day you will." Rayna didn't know what else to say to her.

* * *

Deacon was feeling a bit restless after he dropped Rayna and Daphne off at home with the boys. He could recognize that for what it was so he went to a meeting. Instead of going to his usual group he went to another one. He sat in the back row where there was little chance of him being seen.

"Hi, my name's Paul and I'm an alcoholic. It's been 'bout ten months since my last drink. Before that I was a drunk for most of my life. I beat my wife and children. Because of me my oldest son had to face the same demons. My daughter has let men treat her like dirt her whole life and I just flat out abandoned my youngest son. There's nothing I can do or say that will ever make that right. What finally opened my eyes was I had a near death experience last year, but my oldest son gave me part of his liver to save my life. Even after everythin' I done to him. And trust me I did some really shitty things to him. I saved the brunt of my abuse for him not just 'cause he was the one who had the balls to stand up to me, but 'cause I knew he was my wife's baby and it would hurt her worse if I hurt him. That's pretty much all I have to say." Paul sat back down.

Deacon stood up and he chose to give testimony from his spot on the floor. "Hi, my name is Deacon and I'm an alcoholic. It's been goin' on three years since my last drink, but I have been sober for almost seventeen years minus a slip a couple years ago. I thought that I had finally really and truly gotten a handle on this disease, but today I had to face somethin' and the urge to take a drink hit me harder than it has in a long time. I used to blame my drinkin' on my daddy he was a real no good son of a bitch. Then today he went and did somethin' that surprised me. For the first time in I can't remember when he did somethin' right by me. It by no means makes up for all the things that he did to me as a child, but it's a start. We all start on that first step. I guess that counts for somethin'. I just needed to get a meetin' in and remind myself that I ain't the only one strugglin' with this and that I can continue to beat it." He sat back down.

"DJ, why'd you come here tonight? I know for a fact that your meetings are on the other side of town." Paul caught up to him in the parking lot once the meeting let out.

"Why'd you say what you said up there on the stand today? You didn't have to do it there was nothin' in it for you. I guess that just doesn't jive with the man I know you to be." Deacon replied. For once he didn't tell him not to call him DJ.

"I did have to say it, DJ. You didn't do anythin' to me that I didn't deserve. I just knew that this was my one chance to do somethin' for you for a change and I wanted that desperately. You didn't deserve to lose that little girl for a second time. I really just wanted to do right by you. As your father it was my turn to take care of you." Paul explained to him.

"I don't really give a good damn why you did it. I'm just glad that you did it. I looked bad enough up there without addin' that to it. I really was a miserable bastard when I was drinkin'." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

"Deacon John, I've got one last thing that I wanna tell you that will maybe help you out. You need to think long and hard 'bout where they dug up all that dirt on you. A lot of that wouldn't have been common knowledge. You know the answer you just don't wanna face it." Paul gave him some food for thought. He walked to his truck and got in.

Deacon stared after him for a moment with the wheels in his head turning. Maybe that old man did know what he was talking about for a change.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Here is where things are going to start going differently than from the show. From here on out things are going to start moving quickly so we can get to the end of this story. But, as promised things will start to lighten up even more. I never intended to keep things dark for long. That court room scene just really bothered me and I had to rewrite it. Until next time please review.


	94. Chapter 94

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 94

"That was absolutely horrible today." Rayna sank back on the couch next to her sister. She put the baby monitor down on the coffee table. Both the boys were down for the night and Daphne was in her room.

"I know it was, but at least it turned out the way it should have. You just have to be thankful for that." Tandy replied. She was well into her first bottle of wine.

"Still, I can't believe she said that about Deacon. I know that you haven't always like him, but you also have to know that he would never hurt me and those kids." Rayna ran a hand through her hair.

"I do know that. He would die before he hurt one of you. I just can't believe he gave you a black eye and you never told me." Tandy gave her a look.

"Tandy, he didn't do it on purpose. He explained that. He was passed out and I tried to wake him up. When I did he threw his hand back and he hit me on accident. He didn't mean to at all. Once he sobered up and realized what he did he was beside himself. I had to reassure him that I knew he didn't mean to and that he would never hurt me. That led to one of his longest sober spells without rehab though. Babe, I'm not just makin' excuses for him. It was an accident." Rayna explained to her.

"The rational part of me knows that. The part of me that is a big sister and an aunt wants to go out and kick his ass." Tandy's reaction wasn't unreasonable.

"But, you're not going to. He feels bad enough as it is. Maddie really shattered him today. I didn't think that the daughter I raised was capable of that." Rayna sighed and rubbed her stomach.

"I think it was clear to everyone in that courtroom the judge included that that wasn't Maddie. I can't believe that Cash got her so twisted up." Tandy shook her head.

"I know she does. On the plus side I put a call into Juliette and she's gonna have Maddie as an opener for the next two weeks. That should help break the spell that Cash has on her. I don't think she still realizes how bad she is for her." Rayna kicked her feet up.

"That's something coming from you. I never thought I'd see the day where you thought Juliette Barnes was a good role model for Maddie." Tandy had to chuckle.

"I'm aware that comes as a bigger shock to no one other than me. Juliette has really been great with her lately though." Rayna could admit to that.

"I'll tell you who really stepped up in a big way today, Paul. He just told it like it was. I was really pleasantly surprised with him." Tandy commented.

"I know he did great." Rayna rubbed her belly again.

"Have you been so focused on Maddie that you forgot to feed my future niece or nephew today?" Tandy arched her eyebrow.

"No, I've eaten. I just can't tell you what I had to eat. Truthfully I'm worried about Deacon. He left to go to a meeting hours ago he should have been back by now. The way he dotes on me when I'm pregnant it's not like him to be out without checking in." Rayna related her fears to her.

"Babe, I'm sure he's fine. He's probably just out clearing his head. You know how Deacon is. He has to go out and think things over alone. He will probably be home any time now." Tandy reassured her.

"I'm sure you're right. I just can't help worrying. Rhett came by and got Maddie's check and her clothes earlier. That worries me too. That's two weeks out on her own. I don't know what she's gonna do with herself." Rayna sighed heavily.

"She's ours and she's Deacon's. If anyone can handle it, it's her. You are two of the strongest people that I know." Tandy tried to ease her mind.

"If I'd known that she was gonna do this over music I would have just let her have free reign. I was only trying to protect her it wasn't like I didn't give her a contract and promote her work. I didn't want her to go through the things that I went through when I was first starting out." Rayna pulled her hair up into a ponytail.

"Rayna, you are a good mother. You've only ever done what you thought was best for those girls. You denied yourself over a decade of being with Deacon to protect Maddie. I can admit now that I was wrong to push you to keep her from him. I feel like that contributed to part of the problem. The other part of it is she's like you that way. She wants to make music at all costs to hell with what anyone else thinks. For years I felt like you abandoned me and daddy just so you could make music. I didn't realize at the time that it didn't have to be either or. That's why I got so close to daddy we both missed you terribly." Tandy put her arm around her.

"Thank you for saying that I know that it took a lot for you to admit it. Babe, I never wanted to hurt you or daddy. He just didn't leave me much of a choice on that one. Choosin' between his house and music was like him askin' me to choose between him and Deacon there was no choice at the time. Deacon and music won hands down. They have always been wrapped up with each other for me. Speakin' of daddy I wonder if he paid that judge off." Rayna leaned into her sister's side.

"I can admit when I'm wrong and I was wrong about Deacon. I couldn't ask for a better husband for you or a better daddy for my nieces and nephews. When it comes to things of that matter I don't put anything past daddy. It's possible that he paid someone in the court off to draw that judge or that he would have called in a favor if he had to in order to get a favorable ruling, but I don't think he had a hand in that verdict today. Maddie brought that all on herself. If it's any consolation know that she at least did the right thing in the end." Tandy kissed her head.

"I know she did, but not until after she did some pretty severe damage. I don't know if she and Deacon will ever recover the relationship that she once had. The thing that I don't understand is how the hell they got all that stuff on Deacon. It wasn't like they had time to hire an investigator." Rayna wondered out loud.

"I think if you and daddy can find common ground that Maddie and Deacon will be just fine. I hate to say it, but the first thought that pops into my head was they had to have gotten that from Frankie. They have been in AA together for years and that sounds like stuff he would have talked about there." Tandy replied.

"The thought had crossed my mind, but I hope for Deacon's sake that it isn't true." Rayna shuddered to think what Deacon would do if Frankie had betrayed him.

* * *

Deacon walked into the Mile Marker and he caught Frankie's eye where he stood behind the bar. He gestured with his eyes for him to follow him out back. "Frankie, tell me that you didn't do what I think you did. Tell me that you didn't give all my secrets to your daughter to use against me in court. I said those things in what was supposed to be a safe space."

"First of all let me apologize for Cash. I told her that she needed to stay out of grown folks' business. I didn't give her any of that stuff to use against you. I don't know where she got it from." Frankie apologized.

"Are you sure 'bout that, Frankie? 'Cause if you did it's better just to tell me now." Deacon retorted.

"Deacon, I swear to you that I didn't give her that stuff to use against you. I wouldn't do that. Not with all the stuff that you have on me that I don't want no one else knowin'." Frankie put his hands up in a sign of innocence.

"I can't say that I'm real inclined to believe that." Deacon crossed his arms over his chest.

"You take that back before you really get me good and pissed up." Frankie got up in his face.

"What are you gonna do if I don't?" Deacon's tone was challenging.

"I said take it back." Frankie shoved him.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Deacon let that pass, but Frankie shoved him again. "Frankie, keep your damn hands off me."

"Right," Frankie nodded his head and then he sucker punched Deacon.

Deacon really let him have it. He hit him as hard as he could. He was blinded by rage. He didn't even bother to try to deflect the next punch that Frankie threw his way. He was so mad that he barely felt it anyway. It went back and forth the two of them trading blows.

"What the hell is wrong with you two?" Beverly came out with her hands on her hips. "I might've known that I'd find you two back here wailing on each other."

Frankie and Deacon broke apart and bent at the knees panting. They both took one look at each other and started laughing.

"What the hell is wrong with you, you crazy bastard?" Deacon asked him.

"What's wrong with me? What is wrong with you, you stupid son of a bitch?" Frankie replied.

"What is goin' on out here?" Beverly demanded.

"I came to ask Frankie if he knew where they got that information from and that goofy bastard started throwin' punches." Deacon got out through his laughter.

"I tried to apologize to that asshole and he wouldn't hear anythin' of it." Frankie added.

Beverly's face paled. "Oh God, Baby Brother, I'm so sorry. They were in the bar one day and momma and me were talkin' they must have overheard us. That's where she got it from."

"Bev, it's fine. You didn't do it with malicious intent. Everythin' worked out the way that it should and that's all that matters." Deacon waved off her apology.

"In that case I owe you another apology. Your sister wouldn't have had the information if she hadn't gotten it from me. She just wanted to understand you better." Frankie offered him his hand.

Deacon shook his hand. "Hell, you were just tryin' to do right by my sister. I ain't gonna hold that against you."

"Deacon, call your wife. She called here lookin' for you and she's worried. You know that ain't good for her in her condition." Beverly told him.

"Yeah, I should get headed on home. I ain't gonna find anythin' out and 'bout 'cept for trouble." Deacon took his leave.

* * *

"Maddie, do you want to explain to me what happened in court today?" Cash asked her.

"Cash, I don't have an explanation for it. All I knew was it felt wrong. I was already gutted by what I said about my dad, but the way those lawyers just kept going at him I just couldn't take it anymore. He's such a private person when it comes to that and he shouldn't have had to tell all that in open court." Maddie replied. She learned her lessons the hard way. She was in this mess because of Cash, but yet she had still left with her, because she didn't feel like she could go lean on any of her friends or family. What she'd done in that courtroom had been pretty horrible.

"Well, one good thing came out of it. We are gonna have a hell of a couple weeks. Your mom sent you a check for a hell of a lot of money. I knew that you were good, but I had no idea that you were that good." Cash teased her.

"A lot of that is going to go to lawyers' fees. I think she knew that and she sent me enough to take care of it. I'm going to have to be really careful with the rest of that money. Her and dad call me their expensive child." Maddie corrected her. A pang of sadness hit her when she talked about her father. The way he'd just walked away from her in the courtroom had left a mark.

"I'm sure that we can find you a few shows or something to make some money." Cash said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, I'm sure that something will come up." Maddie agreed. Her heart really wasn't in it at the moment. Was it really worth it if she had to hurt the people she loved to get it?

"I can't believe JC turned on you like that. I knew that jerk wasn't worth your time. I tried to tell you in my own way, but you just never got the hint." Cash started in on JC.

"I don't know I think he meant well. He just really doesn't like you and I don't know why." Maddie defended him.

"Trust me, Maddie, that guy is a loser and you're better off without him. He was only going to drag you down or worse be riding your coattails in ten years when his career fizzles out." Cash kept going.

Maddie was going to reply, but her phone rang. She looked at it curiously when she saw that it was Juliette. "I need to take this, excuse me for a minute." She answered her phone. "Hey, Juliette, what's up?"

"Maddie, I was callin' you because I have a business proposition for you." Juliette's voice came over the other end of the line.

"What is it?" Maddie asked.

"Rayna has to drop out of the tour for a little while and I was wonderin' if you wanted to come on as an opener." Juliette told her. She would do anything to get her away from Cash. Rayna didn't even need to ask this favor of her.

"Seriously? You want me to be your opener? You're not playing with me right now?" Maddie got excited.

Cash smiled at her widely and gave her two thumbs up.

"I'm bein' dead serious right now. I really want you to open for me. I will have Glenn send a contract over for you. It's just a standard contract nothin' for you to worry over." Juliette assured her.

"Sure, whatever that sounds great." Maddie said and then her face fell. "Wait a minute. Is everything ok with my mom and the baby? She's alright isn't she?"

"Yeah everythin' is fine it's nothin' like that. She just wanted to take some time off and spend it with Deacon, Daphne, and the boys. It's nothin' serious at all." Juliette eased her fears.

"Ok, well, that sounds great. I guess I will see you for rehearsals then." Maddie said.

"I will see you at Sound Check at two tomorrow. I'll just have Glenn go over the contract with you then. I'll talk to you later, Maddie." Juliette replied.

"Sounds good to me. I'll see you tomorrow." Maddie hung up the phone.

"Oh my God, was that what I think it was?" Cash squealed.

"It was Juliette just called me and asked me to open for her." Maddie said excitedly.

"That is amazing. It's too bad you couldn't have stuck to your guns in court. We could have found more opportunities like this for you." Cash lamented.

"Cash, I really don't care I just care that I'm getting to go on tour." Maddie waved off her doom and gloom. That phone call from Juliette had really perked her up.

"Right of course. Like I was saying it was a good thing that you dropped your barnacle of a boyfriend now while you're young. It could have been worse you two could have been married and you could be facing the possibility of losing half your stuff." Cash got back on the topic of JC.

"Cash, we haven't even officially ended things and even if we had I do love him and that won't go away anytime soon." Maddie finally spoke up for herself a little bit.

"I don't know how you can still feel that way about him after he betrayed you like that." Cash shook her head.

"He didn't say anything that was so horrible that I can't forgive. He just did what he thought he had to the same as I did." Maddie put the matter to rest.

* * *

Deacon opted to take one of the lunch time spots at the Mile Marker the next day. Rayna, the boys, and Daphne were there. They were keeping her close and showering her with love and affection in the wake of this Maddie thing. As were Beverly, Tandy, Bucky, June, Scarlett, Gunnar, Rhett, and even Paul.

"Alright, I got a new one I wanna try out on ya'll let me know what you think." Deacon started strumming his guitar. He hoped like hell that he was doing the right thing.

" _I remember lookin' up to look up to him. And I remember most the time he wasn't there. I'd be waitin' at the door when he got home at night. He'd pass me by to go pass out in his chair."_ He'd just written this song last night. It was something that he felt like he had to say.

" _And I'd say. Walk a little straighter daddy you're swayin' side to side. Your footsteps make me dizzy and no matter how I try. I keep trippin' and stumblin' if you'd look down here you'd see. Walk a little straighter daddy you're leadin' me."_ This was everything that he had thought growing up, but had never voiced.

June watched him play getting teary eyed.

" _He stumbled in the gym on graduation day and I couldn't help but feel so ashamed. And I wasn't surprised a bit when he didn't stay he stumbled out before they called my name. And I thought."_ Deacon took that one from his real life experience.

" _Walk a little straighter daddy you're swayin' side to side. It's not just me who's watchin' you've caught everybody's eye. And you're trippin' and stumblin' and even though I'm turned eighteen. Walk a little straighter daddy you're still leadin' me."_

Paul looked ashamed of himself for everything that he'd ever put his son through. He was supposed to be proud to carry his name and call him his dad.

" _The old man's still like he always was, but I love him anyway. If I'd learned one thing from him it's my kids will never have to say. Walk a little straighter daddy. You're swayin' side to side. Your footsteps make me dizzy and no matter how I try. I keep trippin' and stumblin' if you'd look down here you'd see. Walk a little straighter daddy you're leadin' me. Yeah, walk a little straighter daddy you're leadin' me."_ Deacon belted the last lines to the song out with every ounce of emotion that he had left in him. With that he let go and he finally forgave his father. It felt good to finally let go of that burden. It didn't mean it had to change things between them, but he was more open to him having a relationship with his grandchildren.

Paul's eyes teared up and he put his hands over his face. He didn't deserve such an act of compassion.

Rayna stood up and started clapping for him. The others followed suit.

"Thank ya'll." Deacon put his guitar in the stand and stepped down from the stage.

June laid both her hands on his cheeks gently. "I'm so glad that you're my son, my sweet boy."

"I love you so, momma." Deacon replied.

"I love you too, my boy." June kissed both his cheeks.

Rayna was waiting for him with a big hug ready. "I'm so proud of you. You are the best man that I know."

"You make me want to be my best, baby." Deacon kissed her and rubbed her belly.

"You should go over and say something to him, Deacon." Rayna inclined her head in Paul's direction.

Deacon paused to kiss both the boys on the head. "Daddy loves you boys so, so very much." He walked over to Paul.

"DJ, that was, wow, I don't even know what to say 'bout that." Paul stumbled over his words.

"Well, I meant every part of it. Includin' the part where I said I love ya anyway. It just takes up too much of my time and energy bein' mad at you all the damn time. So, I'm forgivin' you. Not 'cause you deserve it, but 'cause it's what I need to get on with my life. I've got a wife, four kids, and another one on the way that need the attention that I devote to bein' mad at you. This doesn't change anythin' between us, but I'm open to you bein' a grandpa if that's what you want. You're gettin' a do over don't waste it." Deacon told him.

"Thank you," Paul said simply his voice filled with emotion.

Deacon nodded his head and walked over and hugged Daphne. "What did you think of the song, Squirt?"

"I thought it was really great, daddy. It was nice of you to finally forgive Paul. It shows that my daddy is the best man ever." Daphne told him. She giggled when he kissed her cheek and rubbed his whiskers against her.

"The only one missing right now is Maddie." Rayna had to wipe her eyes.

"Don't worry, babe, she will be home where she belongs soon enough." Tandy assured her.

"Glenn called me earlier. He had a contract drawn up for Maddie to open for Juliette. She is going to sign it at Sound Check today. She went over there to rehearse for their upcoming shows." Bucky chimed in.

"That's great. If anyone can get rid of a nuisance it's Juliette. Since it takes one to know one she's pretty damn good at it." Rayna laughed in spite of herself. Cash had no idea what Rayna had just unleashed on her. The best part was she didn't really have to lift a finger to do anything Juliette would take care of that.

* * *

"Maddie, I'm so glad that you agreed to come on with us." Juliette opened her arms to the teen.

"Hey, Juliette, I'm just glad that I was your first choice. I know that Casey is on the label now." Maddie hugged her.

"Don't be ridiculous you were the first person that I thought of. As you know Casey is on your dad's tour and I wouldn't have wanted to throw off his delicate balance if I borrowed her for a couple of weeks." Juliette hugged her back.

"So, what do we do first?" Maddie asked.

"What we do first is have Glenn go over the contract with you. Like I said it is standard and it has been vetted by the lawyers. The same lawyers that did your contract." Juliette explained.

"The same lawyers that then turned around and screwed you over in court." Cash muttered. Of course she had come along for the ride. "Maddie, I can go over the contract for you if you want."

"Cash, it's fine. Juliette didn't write the contract herself my Aunt Tandy probably did I know that it is all above board." Maddie assured her.

Juliette was just itching to get ahold of Cash, but she plastered a fake smile on her face. She didn't want to risk pushing Maddie further away just yet. "Glenn, has to be around here somewhere. As you can see things are crazy as usual. You know how it goes out on tour. You just haven't toured with me yet it's ten times crazier than normal. Oh, look there's Rhett."

Rhett walked in looking for Sadie who was also rehearsing. He waved at Juliette, but there was barely contained rage rolling off of him in waves when he looked at Cash. The glare he gave her was so hard it could have frozen fire.

"I have somethin' that I need to take care of, but Rhett is gonna be useful and take you to see his girlfriend who also has somethin' that she wants to go over with you. I will come get when I finish handlin' what I have to deal with. Hopefully by then I will have found Glenn." Juliette steered Maddie in Rhett's direction.

"Come on, Maddie, let's go find that woman." Rhett took the hint and took Maddie to find Sadie.

"He's really friendly isn't he?" Cash scoffed.

"Did you not see the look on his face? That was the look of a man who wants to rip you apart limb from limb for the mess you've got his niece in, but he can't 'cause he is a well-bred southern gentleman who was brought up to never hit a woman. I on the other hand have no such hang ups. I was raised out back in the trailer park by where they keep all the garbage cans. I can throw down and whoop your ass like every trailer park princess out there. Here's the thing though I've come a long way from the trailer park and I've learned better ways to fight a leech like you. Maddie doesn't see you for what you really are yet, but she will. Until then I promise you this. If anything happens to that girl because of how mixed up you have her I will hold you personally responsible. You don't have much of a career as it is. I talked to Kasey and she says that you're not that great of a songwriter. So, if any harm comes to Maddie physical or otherwise I will make sure that you are blacklisted. I have a lot of contacts from New York to LA. You better hope and pray that that girl makes it through these two weeks ok." Juliette dropped the hammer on her.

"I guess you can take the girl out of the trailer park, but you can't take the trailer park out of the girl." Cash mused.

"You've got that right. What I don't understand is why you did any of this. What do you get out of tryin' to break Maddie away from her family? The only two things I can figure is you wanna use her for her talent or you're in love with her. You don't look like you're above a good lesbian affair." Juliette wasn't fazed by her words at all. She'd heard it all growing up. Throwing her origins in her face ceased to insult her. She had made peace with where she came from.

"I was just trying to help a friend out. All her mom was doing was holding her back. And if we are honest about it. She's so much of a control freak she probably got you to ask Maddie to come out, so she could still control things." Cash didn't know when to shut her mouth.

"You just watch yourself, sugar, you're already on the Queen of Country's bad side you don't wanna be on mine too. Unlike her I don't play nice." Juliette gave her one last word of warning. Maddie was just like a little sister to her.

"Juliette, I'm done with her if you want her back." Sadie brought Maddie back into the room.

"I'm still waitin' on Glenn. I have no clue where that man is. Unless someone other than me decided to be a diva and cause issues over at the office." Juliette replied.

Glenn rushed in at that moment. "Hey, kiddo, sorry I'm late. Bucky was out of the office this afternoon. That meant that Layla's latest emergency fell on me to handle. I'm here now and I have the contract." He held it up.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Glenn." Juliette waved off his concern.

"Maddie, I'll go over this with you really quick. As a manager I can tell you that it's straightforward and for someone your age it is a really good deal." Glenn went over to Maddie.

"Ok, whatever you say, Glenn." Maddie agreed.

"The judge wasn't really clear on what the rules are here, so your mom signed the contract for the contract, but we are gonna have you sign it too just to be safe." Glenn told her. "Let's go somewhere that we can talk without all this noise."

"That sounds good to me, Glenn." Maddie let him lead her off.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I think I just broke my personal record with three chapters in one day. There is just one more chapter with Cash in it I think. I had to give her an appropriate sendoff and let just let her fade into the background without getting what's coming to her. I don't think there is anyone better to dish that out than Juliette. We only have six chapters and counting left of this story and I plan on making them good ones. Until next time please review.


	95. Chapter 95

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 95

"Hey, Maddie, what's up? You look deep in thought." Juliette sat down across from Maddie. The younger girl was working on something on a piece of paper.

"I'm just trying to get some numbers to add up. The problem is I think over the last week I've spent too much money and I have too many days left over that I need it to last." Maddie looked up from what she was doing.

"Maddie, if you need to borrow some money to keep you up I don't mind loanin' it to you." Juliette offered.

"I can't ask you to do that, Juliette. I just don't know where all my money went." Maddie had a puzzled look on her face.

"I can tell you where it went. You've been blowin' through it like it's water. I made the same mistake when I was your age. That was until Glenn reigned me in and told me to curb my spendin'. It still wasn't until recently that I learned how to really manage my money." Juliette informed her.

"I guess I'll figure it out. I just thought it would be more than enough to last me for two weeks." Maddie shrugged her shoulders.

"That pair of heels you bought when we stopped in LA is part of the problem. They look damn good and you paid the price for that. It also doesn't help that you're not the only person that you're tryin' to keep up. Where is your little sidekick anyway?" Juliette was of course referring to Cash.

"She means well she really does. She just comes on a little strong. I think she said she was going out to try to scope out some industry related stuff to get us in to since we don't play for two days." Maddie replied. She didn't know why she was even bothering to defend Cash. It wasn't like Juliette had said anything that was untrue.

"Maddie, I just want you to be careful with her. I don't want to see you get hurt. I know what it's like to have people hangin' on to you and tellin' you everythin' that you want to hear and all the while they are usin' you in the process. I don't know if you know this, but right after Cadence was born I was sufferin' from Post-Partum and I fell in with a pretty rough crowd. I don't know what would have happened if Rayna hadn't come out and cleaned house with them. If I can return the favor by protectin' you then that would make me happy." Juliette leveled with her.

Maddie sighed and ran her hands over her face. "I just don't know what I'm doing. After everything that happened in court I felt like I couldn't turn to anyone in my family. The judge said I can't have contact with mom and dad. So, I stayed with Cash. I used to think that she just genuinely wanted to help me succeed. I'm not so sure about that anymore. It's like this is all one big party to her. She flips out any time that I so much as mention JC. Not that she has anything to worry about there he's not answering my phone calls."

"I'll tell you what. I think there is still a lesson that you need to learn and unless you do you will repeat this mistake over and over again. I want you to know that if you feel like you're in over your head you can come to me and I will do whatever I can for you. Also, I'm gonna wire some money into your account. I know that you're good for it. You need enough money to make a splash while we are in New York. Are you gonna be alright bein' in the same city as your parents for all these days and not bein' able to talk to them?" Juliette replied.

"I have to be ok with it. I have no other choice. I don't really know how I'm gonna go back home and face them once this is all over. At the time it was just a means to an end, but I said some pretty horrible things to my parents and about them. Especially about my dad. I don't know how he is ever gonna be able to forgive me. I didn't mean what I said, but I still said it." Maddie groaned.

"Your parents are both very forgivin' people. I've messed up with them more times than I can count, but still it never fails any time I need either of them they show up for me. You're their daughter they aren't gonna be any less understandin' with you." Juliette reassured her.

Avery walked over and sat down with Cadence in his arms. "There you are. We just got in and we have been looking all over for you. Catydid go see momma." He handed her to Juliette.

"Hi, Sweet Pea, momma missed you so much." Juliette kissed her daughter's cheek.

Maddie looked down at her phone to see that she had a text from Cash. "I should get going. That's Cash she's waiting on me. I'll see you later, Juliette, thanks for everything."

"No problem, Maddie, I'll have that money wired into your account right away." Juliette told her before she walked away.

Avery waited until Maddie was gone to speak again. "Ok, give me the progress report. I have to report back to Deacon when the kids have their playdate."

"She still hasn't learned her lesson, but I think she's gettin' there. She went through almost all of her money. And I think she's ashamed of herself." Juliette gave him the rundown.

"And Cash?" Avery asked.

"Don't even get me started on that vampire. It's a miracle that I haven't had Emily dig into a hitman yet. Maddie can't make a single decision without her tryin' to tell her what to do. I still don't get what her deal is. I think she is just a user. At least I hope that's all it is. I may have a plan though. I just need someone that she doesn't know for this to work." Juliette muttered in disgust.

"No murder for hire plots. Cadence and I draw the line at visiting you in prison every week. Besides, orange isn't your color." Avery tried to make a weak joke.

* * *

"What's she up to now?" Rayna came out into the living room of their hotel suite. The boys were down for a nap and Daphne was occupying herself.

"Wearin' shoes that are way too high, stayin' out way too late, and partyin' way too much." Deacon reported. He was stalking Maddie's social media accounts.

"Those shoes have a very pretty price tag on them. I think I have a pair in my closet. No wonder Juliette said she's blowin' through money." Rayna snorted.

"She takes after her momma that way. And somehow it doesn't surprise me that you have a pair of those shoes in your beloved closet." Deacon laughed a little. They had been doing their best to keep things as normal as possible for their other three kids. He kept scrolling through her pictures.

"You can leave me and my closet alone." Rayna kissed the top of his head. She studied a picture closely. "Uh, why is our daughter meeting with Lennox Hill?"

"I have no idea." Deacon took his glasses off and looked up at her.

"They are notorious for exploiting young artists and using them up until they have nothing left to give. I know that they were after Casey before she signed with Luke. That's why he came directly to me when he wanted her contract bought out. He knew that they would try again. Excuse my language, but fuck that. As a mother it concerns me, but as a label head it pisses me the fuck off. They shouldn't be talking to my artists. I'm gonna have Bucky get me the number for their label head. I'll put a stop to that right now." Rayna seethed.

"Oh, look at that. I can't say that I'm shocked to see Cash there with her. It was probably her damn idea." Deacon rubbed his temples and kept looking through the pictures.

Rayna happened to look up from her phone in time for once picture to catch her eye. "Is that Vince Pierce?"

"I think so. Why?" Deacon asked her.

"I just don't want him anywhere near our daughter, Deacon." Rayna replied.

"Ray, why? I remember you workin' with him and I remember it didn't last long. Every time I brought the subject up as a matter of fact you and Vinny both got real quiet 'bout it. I think it's time for you to tell me." Deacon told her.

Rayna sat down on the couch next to him and took his hand. "Please understand that the only reason I never told you 'bout this was because I didn't want you to get in trouble. He practically forced himself on me."

Deacon jumped to his feet. "That's it I'm findin' that son of a bitch and I'm killin' him."

"Babe, it's water under the bridge there is no use gettin' yourself all worked up over somethin' that happened so long ago. It was that first dime store record contract I got when I was seventeen back when I had that awful manager for all of two minutes before Watty found Bucky for me. We'd been working in the studio all day I can't remember now why you weren't there I think you had to work and Vinny went with me just to watch out for me. Vince ends up inviting us back to his place. Somehow I ended up alone with him and he starts coming on to me and holding me down. I got away I don't even know how and Vinny you know him he was my big brother and my protector when he saw how shaken up I was he made me tell him what happened. He wanted to kill him, but I got him calmed down. I reassured him that I was fine and that he would only get himself in trouble. Come to find out he went back and warned him if he ever thought about doing anything like that to me ever again he would have him to answer to." Rayna began her tale.

Deacon sat back down beside her and listened without interrupting.

"Afterwards we agreed that it would be better not to tell you about it. My manager played it off like it was no big deal and nothing bad happened so I should just let it go. Needless to say that's why I fired him and Watty found me Bucky. That's why that record label dropped me they said I was a trouble maker. It's just since I had the girls that I realized just how lucky I got and what his intentions really were. That's why I'm so hell bent on protecting them from the bad side of this business. I don't want to see them get hurt like that." Rayna finished her story.

"I'm so sorry that you had to go through that, baby. If I'd had any idea you know that he wouldn't have gotten away with it." Deacon cupped her cheek.

"I know that you would have killed him that's why Vince and I never told you." Rayna smiled at him. For as fierce as he could get when he was mad he was so tender with her and their kids.

"What are we gonna do 'bout him bein' 'round Maddie?" Deacon asked her.

"First I'm gonna call Lennox Hill and give them hell for trying to poach my artists. Them I'm gonna tell Juliette to drop a subtle hint to Maddie that she needs to be careful with him. After that we need to go over to the venue and get ready for that benefit concert that we are playin' with Luke tomorrow night. He should be in town by now." Rayna laid out the game plan for him.

"That sounds pretty damn good to me, baby." Deacon agreed with her. Sometimes it was better for him to let her handle things. His first instinct was to start swinging.

* * *

Maddie ran into Casey backstage at the venue they were all going to be playing where she sat writing a song. Maddie had come by just to get a feel for the place and maybe do a little writing too.

"You mind if I sit down or is this spot taken?" Maddie gestured to the spot next to her.

"I don't mind the company at all. Help yourself to a seat. I'm just working on this new song and it's givin' me one hell of a time." Casey replied.

Maddie sat down on the floor next to her. "Times like these are when it's good to have a writing partner. The part where we get stuck is the part where JC and I usually bring out the best in each other as song writers and it ends up being the best part of the song." A pang hit her in the chest at the thought of JC. She missed him terribly. It was possible that she had screwed everything up with him.

"I know what ya'll are capable of together. I have a hit song with him that you co-wrote. You won't get any arguments outta me 'bout how good you are together." Casey gave her a smile.

"We are pretty great together if I don't say so myself." Maddie laughed a little.

"You two have the real deal together. Very few artists find their musical soulmate. You've got Sonny and Cher, Hall and Oates, Lennon and McCartney, Dolly and Porter, Johnny and June. Then there's George and Tammy, Tim and Faith, Garth and Trisha, Brooks and Dunn, and no list of musical duos is complete without Rayna and Deacon." Casey listed off for her.

"You forgot Willie and Waylon." Maddie added. She picked up Casey's discarded guitar and started playing around on it.

"Damn, you really do have a little outlaw in you. I didn't expect Willie and Waylon to come out of your mouth." Casey sounded impressed. She started keeping time to the tune Maddie was playing by drumming on her leg.

"I appreciate classic country music. I'm Deacon Claybourne's daughter. And by the way on any list Rayna and Deacon come before Tim and Faith. They were making music together way before those two." Maddie kept playing the guitar.

"I stand corrected. No One Will Ever Love you or The Rivers Between Us?" Casey asked her.

"The Rivers Between us. No One Will Ever Love You is more popular, but Rivers is a much better song." Maddie replied.

"I actually agree with you there. For the record he didn't embarrass you by pullin' you off the stage. He saved you from embarrassin' yourself. That song is pretty bad and not in a good way. You're a way better songwriter than that." Casey observed.

"Are we going to talk each other to death or are we gonna write this song?" Maddie ignored her last comment. She couldn't deny the truth in that statement though.

"Let's write this song." Casey started singing the lyrics she had down. She pushed the notepad over so that Maddie could see it too.

In that moment though Maddie didn't realize it she had found a friend.

* * *

Rusty ran into Cash in one of the dressing rooms backstage at the venue. "Sorry, I didn't know that anyone would be in here. I'm supposed to be gettin' these dressin' rooms set up." He apologized.

"It's no biggie at all. It's not like this is my dressing room anyway. It's Maddie Claybourne's." Cash didn't recognize Rusty as Deacon's personal assistant.

"It's crazy that amount of young talent that are out on these two tours. There's Maddie, Casey Miller, and JC Grayson." Rusty observed.

"JC is just another dime a dozen cowboy that will fizzle out pretty quick. I'll admit that Casey is good, but she still doesn't have anything on Maddie." Cash replied.

"I'm sorry, I didn't ask what you were to Maddie. I'm new and I don't know who everyone is yet." Rusty looked down at his feet shyly.

"I'm her manager slash friend slash unofficial big sister slash confidant. This is more of a stepping stone for her. She's gonna ride out the rest of this contract until she's eighteen and then we are gonna move on to a bigger and better label. There's no way that she's ever gonna reach her full potential with her mom breathing down her neck all the time. Besides that, she can make both of us a hell of a lot more money at a label based out of New York or LA. I think I've got the ground work laid for her to sign with Lennox Hill once she's done with Highway Sixty-five. I've even got Vince Pierce interested in her. I mean really that's what she needs is someone like that. Deacon Claybourne is not a producer he's a barely sober recovering alcoholic on a permanent dry drunk and constantly one bad day from slipping. He will wreck her if given the chance. He's done it with his own life and career enough times he shouldn't have the chance to do it to hers too. I'd be after Daphne too, but she doesn't have one tenth the talent that Maddie does. Sure she's great, but she's not in the same league as Maddie. She's just a stupid little kid that's attached to Maddie like a barnacle. Maddie only sings with her because she feels obligated." Cash rambled on and on.

"Well, I will leave you to it then. I have to get my work done I don't wanna get fired. You have a good one." Rusty walked out of the room and took a deep breath. Even he wanted to strangle Cash.

"Tell me that you've got somethin', Rusty." Juliette stepped out from the shadows.

"I don't just have somethin' I have the motherlode. She likes to talk too much and make herself look important. She told me everythin' I needed to know without me havin' to ask her." Rusty pulled out his phone and sent the recording he had taken to Emily's phone.

"Emily has that now?" Juliette asked.

"Emily should be gettin' that any minute and you'll have it shortly after that. She didn't even recognize me." Rusty smirked.

"Rusty, if I weren't a married woman I would kiss you right now. You did incredibly well." Juliette praised him.

* * *

Deacon was waiting around to go on with Rayna for the benefit concert that she and Luke had cooked up last minute. He was playing on his phone and checking up on Maddie just to make sure that she was ok. From her most recent pictures he could see that she was at some sort of party. His eyes went wide with shock and rage when he saw Vince in the background in one of the pictures. His daughter thank God felt the need to broadcast to the world where she was at all times and he had the address for the party. He hadn't been able to protect his wife from this creep, but he was going to protect his daughter.

"Max," Deacon grabbed his friend by the arm. "You go on for me with Ray. You know all of her songs and you have her set down cold. If she asks where I went just tell her I will be back as soon as I can."

"Sure, Freakin' Deacon. Is everythin' ok?" Max asked him.

"No, it's not, but it will be soon." Deacon patted his back and took off running.

He flagged down a cabbie and gave him the address of the party Maddie was at. He had no trouble getting in the door. He guessed he looked the part of a hard partying musician. He could barely hear himself think over the crap that passed for music that was thumping from the speakers. The loft was packed and he couldn't really make out anyone that looked like Maddie. He thought he might have saw Cash, but he didn't give a damn about her.

He made his way down the hallway to what looked like a studio. The crowd had thinned out and the noise had died down.

"Maddie!" He called out at the top of his lungs. "Maddie!" He yelled even louder that time.

"Dad!" Maddie's voice was muffled and she sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "Dad!"

Deacon threw open the door where it sounded like his daughter's voice was coming from. His body stiffened with rage when he saw Vince move from on top of her. "Maddie, come here. Come to daddy."

Maddie got up and rushed to him.

Deacon put her behind him and stood in front of her protectively. "Did you touch my daughter?" he demanded.

"Nah, man, everything is cool." Vince put his hands up in a sign of surrender.

"What about my wife did you touch her?" Deacon advanced on him his fist clenched. He grabbed him by the front of his shirt.

"I don't know what you're talking about. Get your damn hands off me." Vince tried to jerk loose from his grip.

"Dad, please, come on let's just go." Maddie begged him tearfully.

Deacon let him go reluctantly. "You're lucky she just saved your life."

"She's just as big of a tease as her mother was at that age and she wants it just as badly. The harder they fight the worse they want it." Vince just couldn't keep his mouth shut.

Deacon didn't say anything he just punched him in the mouth. It took every ounce of restraint he had to stop at just one punch. "Don't you ever talk 'bout my wife and my daughter like that." He walked back over to Maddie. "I'm so sorry, baby girl, but that I couldn't let stand. Now it's really important I need you to tell daddy did you take anythin' to drink from him?"

"I had one drink, but I feel fine. It's ok, I get what mom was saying now." Maddie threw her arms around him.

"Maddie, what's going on in here?" Cash walked in and she looked around at everyone in the room.

"How could you, Cash? You left me alone with him. You promised me that you'd always have my back. Where were you when I needed you?" Maddie yelled at her.

"Maddie, I screwed up. Come on you know me. You know what I'm like it won't happen again." Cash did some fast talking.

"Maddie, right now it's up to you. I can't force you to go. It'll only make things worse." Deacon held his hand out to her.

Maddie looked at Cash and then at her dad. Without hesitation she took Deacon's hand. "Take me to my mom please."

"Of course, baby girl, come on." Deacon pulled her close to him and kissed her head.

The cab ride back to the venue was silent as neither of them really knew what to say to each other. That part would come later. They had some hard work to do to rebuild their relationship. For right at the moment Maddie was content to be in her father's arms and safe.

Deacon ushered Maddie backstage with him.

"Deacon, where have you been?" Rayna had just stepped off the stage.

Deacon didn't say anything he just stepped out of the way so she could see Maddie.

"Mom," Maddie rushed into her mother's open arms.

"My sweet girl, I'm so happy to see you." Rayna hugged her tightly.

"Maddie!" Daphne was so excited to see her sister. "You're back." She wrapped her arms around her.

"Hey, Squirt," Maddie used Deacon's nickname for her. She hugged her back.

"I'm sorry that I just ran out on you like that, but I saw where she was…" Deacon started to say, but Rayna cut him off by kissing him deeply.

"You brought her back to us." Rayna stared into his eyes lovingly.

"Can we go back to the hotel now? I really, really miss those bad boys." Maddie asked.

"They miss you too, come on, let's go see them." Rayna replied. They all walked out with their arms around each other.

* * *

"You ready to do this? I think this is gonna be even better than the time we tag teamed Jeff Fordham." Juliette was chomping at the bit to get rid of Cash once and for all.

"Let's go do this and let's make this quick." Rayna shook her head at how eager Juliette seemed.

"Oh gladly." Juliette knocked loudly on the door of the hotel suite that Maddie and Cash had been sharing.

Cash opened the door. "What do you want?" She hadn't seen Rayna yet.

"I think it would be wise if we took this inside." Rayna made her presence known.

"Yeah of course, come in." Cash stammered a little.

"I'm paying for this suite I was gonna come in either way." Rayna retorted.

"What can I help you two with?" Cash asked.

"I'm gonna be generous I'm gonna give you five minutes to get your stuff and keep my mind only your stuff not anythin' you've conned my daughter into buyin' you and get out of here. Then you're gonna go wherever the hell you want as long as it's not Nashville and you're far, far away from my daughter. If you don't comply with that not only will I make sure that you can't get a shot from Lower Broad to Music Row I will take you to court for endangering the welfare of a minor and contributing to the delinquency of a minor and harboring a run away. Either way you're done in the city of Nashville." Rayna listed for her.

"Why would I want to do that?" Cash tried to act tough.

"Juliette is so glad you asked that, sugar. Aren't you, Juliette?" Rayna put on her fake southern belle voice.

"You bet I am. See, you're not the only one that thinks you're smart. The difference is I'm actually crafty and you're not." Juliette smirked. She played the recording that Rusty had taken of her earlier that day.

"What the hell, Cash? I thought you were supposed to be my friend. This whole time you were just using me." Maddie had let herself into the suite using her key. She had come down to get some of her stuff.

"Maddie, it wasn't like that at all." Cash tried to cover.

"It was exactly like that. And what did you say about my baby sister? That she was just a stupid little kid attached to me like a barnacle. The only parasite I see around here is you. And sure my baby sister may be clingy, but it's because we are sisters and we always have each other's backs no matter what. Unlike her though you're a freakin' vampire trying to feed off of whatever you can get." Maddie went on.

Rayna and Juliette just sat back and watched. This was better than what they had planned anyway.

"Maddie, that was taken out of context. How do you know that wasn't doctored? Her husband is a producer he would know how to do it. She clearly has something against me." Cash tried to shift the blame to Juliette.

"I'm so stupid. I can't believe I didn't see this before. JC warned me that you were trying to drive a wedge between me and everyone in my life, but I didn't want to believe him. It turns out he was right all along. You wanted me to yourself so you could milk me for every dime I have." Maddie got up in her face.

"Maddie, I was only trying to be your friend. As you can see your mom is a Type A control freak. She can't stand the thought of you having your own life or you building a bigger career than hers. And your dad well he's a train wreck. You heard all of that in court about him and still you want to be around him. He almost killed your mother." Cash was trying to get back control of the situation.

"Cash, shut the hell and don't ever talk about my parents like that again. I know right from wrong I'm smarter than this, but I let you paint a pretty picture for me and I lost my mind." Maddie got even closer to her.

"Maddie, what are you doing? We both know that you're not a fighter you don't have it in you." Cash scoffed at the idea.

"I just wanted to let you in on a little secret that my dad taught me." Maddie punched Cash as hard as she could in the face. Admittedly that wasn't very hard, but still it felt good. "We're Claybourne's nobody messes with us, but us."

Cash grabbed her nose she was more startled than hurt.

"Juliette, please get Beau to escort her out. She has a ratty suitcase and a guitar case. Everything else in here is mine I paid for it." Maddie turned to Juliette.

"With pleasure, Maddie." Juliette pulled her phone out and called her bodyguard.

Maddie went to her room and grabbed her guitar. "Come on, mom, let's go back to all those crazies."

"That sounds pretty good to me." Rayna put her arm around her shoulders.

On their way to the elevator they ran into JC.

JC just stared at Maddie for a moment. He was dressed in his uniform. Hence the reason he hadn't been returning her calls he'd been on a training mission.

"I think I can give you two five minutes of privacy." Rayna could see the way they were looking at each other.

"I don't need five minutes." Maddie sat her guitar case down and went over and kissed JC deeply. "I'm sorry and thank you." She picked her guitar case up again.

"We'll talk later." JC smiled.

"We will talk later. Tonight I just really need to spend time with my family. I hurt my dad and my sister so badly. I need to start to repair that. I know that you aren't going anywhere." Maddie replied.

"That's right I'll be right here waiting." JC touched the brim of his beret and saluted her.

"I won't even have a talk with you about violence not being the answer. Sometimes some people just deserve to get punched." Rayna commented once they got on the elevator.

"Mom, I don't know what I'm going to do. I hurt him so badly and for no reason. He wasn't lying when he said there wasn't a place too far that he wouldn't come running the minute that I needed him that I didn't even have to say the words he'd know. He saved me from something really bad tonight and all I've done lately is make him feel horrible." Maddie leaned into her mother's side and cried.

"Shh, Pumpkin, I know. It's gonna be ok. I promise you that your daddy still loves you." Rayna hugged her tight and kissed her head.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. And that is the end of Cash I had to send her out with a bang. I know that Deacon was supposed to have gotten a clue or something, but I'm sorry if ever anyone needed to be punched if even just once it was Vince. I had to rectify that. We only have five more chapters to go, but we have a lot more exciting stuff to cover. Until next time please review.


	96. Chapter 96

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 96

"Girls! Time for school, let's get a move on. You don't wanna be late and you don't wanna make momma and daddy late for the appointment they have after this." Rayna called up the stairs to her daughters.

"Your momma acts like bein' late upsets her like it's not somethin' that her and daddy argue 'bout all the time." Deacon cooed at his boys as he wiped their faces off. "You two managed to eat breakfast and stay pretty clean. We will put that one in the win column." He gave them both a high five.

"Deacon, please, babe, just stop talking." Rayna begged him.

Maddie and Daphne both came down to the kitchen dressed and ready for school.

"There are your sissies. All ready for another fun filled day at school." Deacon kept talking to the boys.

Maddie had been back for a few weeks now and the two of them had successfully avoided talking about what she had said about him in court. Their conversations consisted mostly of idle chit chat and boring pleasantries now. Rayna was about ready to lock the two of them in a room together and not let them out until they found some common ground. The tension between those two was the last thing that she needed on top of her pregnancy.

"We find out what we're having today don't we, dad?" Daphne asked excitedly.

"Yes we do." Deacon smothered her face with kisses and made her laugh.

"I still say it's probably gonna be half monster like Deac and Jayme are." Maddie tried to joke with him and it fell flat.

"None of my babies are monsters. I just think about sellin' ya'll to the highest bidder some days. Especially this one currently camped out in my uterus causin' all kinda trouble." Rayna once again broke in to keep an awkward silence from setting in.

"We need to get goin' like right now. Everybody move out." Deacon clapped his hands. He grabbed both of the boys and buckled them into their seats in the back of Rayna's SUV.

He drove the girls to school holding Rayna's hand while they chattered in the back seat.

"Alright girls, here's your stop. Both of you have a good day." Rayna smiled at her daughters.

"Learn somethin' good and come home and tell me 'bout it, Squirt." Deacon called after Daphne.

Rayna gave him a look for not saying anything to Maddie.

"Have a good day, Maddie." Deacon added.

"I will. I know that I've said this a bunch of times now and you're probably tired of hearing. I think you've been so mad and so hurt that you haven't been able to truly hear it, but I am so, so sorry for what I did to you, dad. I'll keep saying it until you hear it." Maddie said before she headed off.

"Deacon, she is our daughter. You can't keep giving her the cold shoulder." Rayna pointed out to him.

"I'm not givin' her the cold shoulder, Ray. I just don't know how to respond to that. I understand that she's sorry and I appreciate the fact that she's said it so many times, but it doesn't make everythin' better. She painted me to be some kinda monster and not 'cause she believed it, but 'cause she wanted to get her way. That's what makes it worse is that she lied 'bout it." Deacon sighed. He was so tired of having this conversation with her.

Rayna looked out the window. "Don't forget to drop the boys off with your momma."

"I didn't plan on it." Deacon retorted.

June came out to get the boys out of the car. "There's my two boys. We are gonna have so much fun together while momma and daddy are away. I made cookies especially for my guys. I thought we could negotiate somethin' 'bout you two maybe walkin' soon that way." She kissed each of their cheeks.

"Thanks for keepin' them this mornin', June." Rayna thanked her.

"Don't you dare thank me. You just go make sure that my other grandbaby is healthy." June waved to them.

Deacon drove them to Rayna's OBGYN.

"Deacon, trust me if you wanna continue to enjoy sex you'll put that particular magazine down." Rayna warned him.

Deacon dropped the magazine he had in his hands like it was radioactive. "I don't even wanna know."

It wasn't long before they were called back to the exam room. Rayna changed out of clothes and into a gown and got up on the exam table.

Deacon was standing next to her holding her hand when the doctor walked in.

"Alright, you two are here to see me for the exciting appointment." Dr. Monroe smiled at them.

"We saved this one especially for you." Rayna replied.

"I've gone over all your scans so far and everything looks great. Today I'm gonna do the amnio and we are gonna see if Baby Claybourne won't cooperate and let us find out the sex." Dr. Monroe went on.

"The amnio is the thing with the needle isn't it?" Deacon asked.

"It is the thing with the needle and it's not very much fun for me. You poke me and then I get poked by ginormous needles." Rayna exaggerated just a little bit.

Deacon had to laugh at her. "Take my hand and squeeze it as tight as you want to."

"I have to say I don't think I've ever seen a more involved father than him." Dr. Monroe kept Rayna distracted by talking to her while she prepared to do the amnio.

"You think this is somethin' he's pretty great 'bout diaper duty and two AM feedings. He can handle those two boy better than I can and I have more experience than he does." Rayna bragged on him. She flinched slightly when she felt the pinch of the needle in her stomach, but other than that it wasn't so bad.

Deacon smoothed her hair back and kissed her forehead. "You ok?"

"Yeah, it just hurt a little." Rayna smiled up at him.

"You two know the drill we will have the results of that test back before you leave here today. It won't take long at all to do the testing. Now, let's get to the fun part." Dr. Monroe squirted the ultrasound gel on Rayna's belly and started to move the wand around.

Deacon stared at the screen with a smile on his face.

"There's our little Peanut, daddy." Rayna smiled with him.

"I know. I see the Peanut." Deacon replied.

"Congratulations, momma and daddy, it's a girl." Dr. Monroe reported.

Deacon got all teary eyed and red faced. "You're givin' me another little princess, Ray."

Rayna teared up too. "You are gonna be so great with her, babe. You just had the most adorable reaction."

Deacon leaned down and kissed her. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, babe. I think it's safe to say Daphne is gonna be happy. She was hoping for a little sister to dress up." Rayna smiled against his lips.

"And I think by Maddie's estimation this means the chances of her bein' born half monster or demonically possessed go down by a least half." Deacon laughed. He didn't realize it, but he'd just talked about Maddie without feeling the stabbing betrayal of what she had done to him.

"I see that your teenager may possibly be possessed by the minions of hell too. I thought it was only mine." Dr. Monroe commented.

"Ours is almost seventeen. I'm pretty sure that all seventeen-year-old girls go through a period of demonic possession." Rayna spoke up.

"Mine is going on eighteen. If I can get her out the door to college I won't kill her. I promise I won't." Dr. Monroe laughed.

"We already practically have a son-in-law. Do you have one of those?" Deacon asked.

"You're lucky you've only had one. I've had about five of those so far." Dr. Monroe retorted. "I'm gonna go check on those tests results and print those ultrasound pictures off for you. You can go ahead and get dressed." She left the room.

Rayna changed back into her clothes. "So, what are you thinking?"

"I'm thinkin' that I'm really, really happy. We wanted another girl." Deacon dropped to his knees and kissed her belly. "Hi, Princess, this is your daddy. I love you so much."

Rayna threaded her fingers through his hair and let him talk to their unborn daughter for as long as he wanted to. He was still in that position when Dr. Monroe came back into the room. "Deacon, you should probably get up now."

"Don't stop him on my account. I told you he's the most involved father I've ever seen. Your daughter is perfectly healthy. The test showed no genetic abnormalities. I have your ultrasound pictures for you and you are free to go." Dr. Monroe handed Rayna the pictures.

"Come on, babe, get up off the floor. Let's get outta here. Me and this baby girl are both starving." Rayna laughed.

Deacon stood up and took her hand. "I guess I better feed ya'll then."

Rayna and Deacon spent the morning and afternoon together wandering around town until it was time to pick the girls up.

"Did you find out?" Daphne asked as soon as she got into the car.

"Well, hello to you too." Deacon laughed.

"Babe, you should know that we don't matter right now she just wants to know about this one in the oven." Rayna chuckled.

"Are you two gonna tell us or are you gonna keep us in suspense until we get home?" Maddie asked.

"Deacon, I think we are gonna have to tell them before we have revolt on our hands." Rayna looked over the top of her sunglasses at him.

"Alright, I guess we can tell 'em." Deacon teased. "Ya'll should unzip your brothers' jackets."

Daphne unzipped Jayme's jacket and Maddie unzipped Deac's. Both girls let out loud squeals. Jayme's shirt said Proud Big Brother of a Baby Sister and Deac's said No one Messes With My Baby Sister on My Watch.

"It's a girl!" Daphne exclaimed.

"Thank God, it's not another monster like these two." Maddie was happy, but she felt a little jealous. It was because things weren't so great between her and Deacon at the moment and she was afraid this baby would replace her in his heart.

"Yeah, ya'll are gettin' a baby sister." Rayna confirmed.

"That is so awesome." Daphne was beside herself with happiness.

"Mom, are you and dad still coming to hear me play at the Mile Marker tonight?" Maddie asked.

"Of course we are. We wouldn't miss it for anything in the world." Rayna assured her.

* * *

Maddie was up on stage at the Mile Marker later that night. She'd been given a regular spot to give her more freedom with her music. She sat on a stool with her guitar across her lap. "For this next song I'm going to need a little bit of help from my dad. This is the first song that we ever wrote together."

"Deacon, go on don't keep her waiting." Rayna nudged him with her elbow.

Deacon walked up on the stage. He picked a guitar and sat down on a stool next to Maddie. He gave her a smile. "Maddie, do you wanna start us off or do you want me to?"

"I thought that you could." Maddie smiled back at him.

Deacon started strumming his guitar and Maddie followed suit.

" _I don't remember how I got here, when my rose colored glasses disappeared."_ Maddie started singing.

" _Sometimes my fingers they can lose touch. Start lettin' go of everythin' I love."_ Deacon came in for the second half of the verse.

" _When I get the feeling that my prayers have hit the ceiling on those darker days when my faith has lost all meaning. You keep me believing."_ They sang the chorus together.

" _My fears are safe here held in your hands. When I'm broken you put me back together again."_ She sang again.

" _All that I once was. All I could be. When I've forgotten baby you remind me."_ He looked over at his daughter as he sang. He didn't know how they'd gotten so far off course from where they'd started.

" _When I get the feeling that my prayers have hit the ceiling on those darker days when my faith has lost all meaning. You keep my believing."_

" _If ever my red heart starts beating blue."_ She sang the line softly.

" _And all you are to me baby I'll be that for you."_ He picked up.

" _When I get the feeling that my prayers have hit the ceiling on those darker days when my faith has lost all meaning. When I get the feeling that my prayers have hit the ceiling on those darker days when my faith has lost all meaning."_

" _You keep me believing. You keep me believing."_ Maddie sang.

" _You keep my believing."_ Deacon ended the song. He leaned over to hug her and kiss her cheek.

Rayna smiled at them from the audience. She knew that they still had a long way to go, but they had at least started the healing process.

Later on back at home Rayna stuck her head into Maddie's bedroom to see how she was doing. "Can I come in?"

"Sure, mom, I was just getting ready to go to sleep." Maddie waved her in.

Rayna sat on the bed next to her and smoothed her hair back from her face. She kissed her forehead. "You did good tonight. Sometimes with your daddy you have to be the one to make the first step. I know that he wants to forgive you. He loves you so much, Maddie. You just have to help him get over the hurt."

"I know that, mom. I wonder if he would be willing to come into the studio and record that with me. I also have an idea that I want to run by you." Maddie replied.

"I think that he would really love that. I'm open to hearing your ideas even if they are radical." Rayna told her.

"I know at some point this summer that you're gonna stop touring and I'm going to take the open spot on the roster. I was hoping that I could get a four song set instead of a three song set so I can do a song or two with Daphne too." Maddie let her in on her idea.

"I'm gonna be real honest with you and tell you that I don't know what's going on with the tours this summer yet. I do know that you will have a spot and I think that we can give you a four song set. That's really sweet of you." Rayna liked seeing how hard Maddie was working to rebuild her relationships with everyone.

"I think that I hurt Daphne almost as badly as I hurt dad by pulling away from her. She's my baby sister and I do wanna sing with her. I don't ever want her to think that I don't want to make music with her. It's one of my favorite things in the world. I just want to do my own thing too. I made her understand that, but then I abandoned her. I feel horrible about it. I promised her that we would always have each other no matter what. She had to befriend Gunnar because I was so far up Cash's ass. That poor kid we try to sell Gunnar to people to get rid of him." Maddie replied.

"Maddie, your sister forgave you the moment you came home, but that is a nice idea. And be nice to Gunnar. That loveable goofball fits right in with the rest of the crazy people around here." Rayna shook her head.

"I'm not the one who is mean to Gunnar. JC and Will are mean to Gunnar. Rhett and Mack are mean to Gunnar. Not that I would really know anything about what's going on in the group right now. The only one really talking to me is Mack. They are my friends and I ditched them. I feel horrible about that too." Maddie groaned.

"Like you said they are your friends they will forgive you. Mack isn't the only one talking to you. Juliette and Avery are talking to you." Rayna pointed out to her.

Maddie turned her head to look out her window when she heard something tapping against it.

"What in the world is that? I would say it's your boyfriend, but I know he's out of town until tomorrow morning." Rayna went over to look out the window. She shook her head when she saw who was out there. She raised the window up. "Mack, go around and use the front door like a normal person." She called out to him. "Really, Maddie? You were just gonna sneak him in here?"

"Mom, it's not like you have to worry about anything happening with him not only is he gay he's dating my boyfriend's best friend." Maddie assured her.

"I know that. I was just wondering why you were sneaking him in at all. He's welcome here." Rayna reminded her.

"He came by to drop off a ticket for me for the game tomorrow night. Everyone is going and I wasn't gonna go, but he insisted on it. We are kinda doing an all-day sports thing tomorrow because it's Rhett's first home game in the new stadium too." Maddie explained.

"Just go get the ticket from him." Rayna laughed. "Plus, I think it will be good for you to be around your friends again."

* * *

Cumberland River Memorial Stadium reflected the expensive price tag that came with it. The field was covered with the best turf that money could buy. The stadium had a retractable roof so that they could continue to play if it started raining heavily. Lamar's people had got the project done in record time. That was a testament to how badly he'd wanted that stadium built.

" _Batting ninth for your Nashville Rivermen today's starting pitcher and team captain number forty-four Rhett Claybourne."_ The announcer finished the team's lineup.

Rhett joined his team on the first base line. He took his cap off and waved to the crowd. His jersey was red with Rivermen written across the front in gold letters. His hat was also red with gold lettering.

"Atta boy, Rocket." Deacon cheered loudly for his brother. "Deac, say go Uncle Rhett." He bounced his son on his knee. Their seats were on the first base line right behind the dugout.

"Let's go, Rhett." Rayna whooped. She helped Jayme clap his hands.

"Daddy, I'm surprised that you are sitting on the field with us instead of up in your luxury box." Tandy commented to her father.

"The luxury box is for entertaining investors. Today is a family day." Lamar replied.

"Or at least it would be if Jeff wasn't sitting right here." Bucky mumbled.

"Hey, Baldy, I heard that. I'm the GM get used to having me around." Jeff shot back.

"You're around for now anyway, Jeff. Pull any of the stunts that you like to pull and daddy will fire you." Rayna advised him.

"Lamar, I thought you told Cole that you and Rayna get along now?" Audrey asked him. Coleman was throwing out the first pitch.

"We do get along. She just doesn't like him." Lamar replied.

"For the record no one actually likes Jeff." Juliette chimed in.

"What she said." Avery agreed.

Out on the field Rhett handed a ball to Coleman for him to throw out the first pitch.

"Ok, here we go." Mack got excited.

"Mack, this isn't even your sport." Will laughed.

"I like all sports you know this." Mack replied.

"I don't understand this game." Maddie admitted.

"Maddie, just shh. Stop talkin'." JC shook his head. "I'll explain it to you as you have questions."

A batter from the other team stood in the on deck circle while Rhett threw a few warmup pitches.

"He's on today." Deacon commented.

"I think we will get a good outing out of him anyway." Lamar replied.

Rhett discarded the ball he'd used to warmup and he called for another one from the home plate umpire. The catcher threw the new ball to him and the batter stepped into the box. He walked around the mound and cracked his neck. He took a deep breath and went into his stretch. He threw a fastball straight down the plate so fast the batter could only look at it. It was a called strike.

"Squirt, put a big K on that poster you brought in with you. Use the red marker for it." Deacon said after Rhett struck the batter out.

"What does that mean?" Daphne asked.

"A K is used for a strikeout. When he looks up here he's gonna wanna see that. So make it nice and big." Deacon explained to her.

"Lamar, he's done. Why is the manager letting him bat?" Jeff asked towards the end of the game.

"Because he doesn't just pitch and he's pitched very well today. Trust me the manager knows what he's doing. If he thought Rhett was done he would have shuffled some things around." Lamar replied.

"Come on, Rocket, you've got this. Bases loaded and two outs. They walked the last batter to get to you make them pay for that." Mack cheered.

"Show 'em what ya got, Rhett." Will gave a rebel yell.

Rhett dug into the batter's box and gripped his bat tightly. He took the first pitch that he saw for a strike on the corner. He shook his head and took a deep breath. He was ready for the next pitch and he just crushed it out of the park for a grand slam.

"There you go, Rocket!" Deacon yelled.

Rhett trotted around the bases and touched home plate. He walked into the dugout and then he came back out and raised his hat to the crowd in a standing ovation. He found Sadie in the stands and he blew her a kiss.

* * *

"Listen to that would ya? Maddie is out with her friends tonight. Daphne is at a sleepover. And these boys are actually playing quietly for a change I don't know how to act." Rayna sat back on the couch with her feet up on the coffee table.

"You better enjoy it while you can, babe. I think we gave up our right to peace and quiet when we decided to have more kids." Deacon put his arm around her shoulders.

"In all fairness we didn't exactly decide to have more kids. You and I slept together and those two beautiful boys just kinda happened. And as for this little girl that is still under construction. We agreed to have her we just were already pregnant when we made that agreement." Rayna corrected him.

Deacon watched as both the boys used the coffee table to pull themselves up. "I wonder when the twin terrors are ever gonna walk. There mawmaw has tried everythin' to get them to walk and they just won't do it."

"We've had them at the doctor and he said they are both perfectly healthy and they will walk when they want to. They are just a couple of lazy little boys. They weren't all that active in the womb either. With Maddie I thought I was having a soccer player and Daphne jumped around all over the place. Those two would kick occasionally or one of them would elbow his brother for getting in his space." Rayna explained to him.

"Ray, get your phone out. I think they might be gettin' ready to do it. Look at that, Deac just let go of the table." Deacon tried not to get overly excited.

"Talk to him, Deacon. He has always reacted to you." Rayna told him.

Deacon stood up slowly and went to stand at the end of the coffee table. "Hey, Deac, do you wanna come to daddy?" He stooped down so he could look him in the eyes.

Deac took a couple of shaky unsteady steps, but he made it to his father. He grinned at him showing off the teeth he had.

"That was so good, Deac, daddy is so proud of you." Deacon picked him up and kissed his cheek.

Rayna got up and kissed her son's cheek. "Yay, Deac!" She clapped her hands. She handed her phone to Deacon. "Let's see if I can't get the other one to walk. You know how to work the camera on that thing." She went and stood a couple of steps away from Jayme.

"If he'll do it for anyone it'll be you." Deacon turned the camera on.

"Jayme Wyatt, come see your momma, baby boy. You know you wanna walk. You can't let your brother outdo you. No you can't." Rayna encouraged him.

Jayme let go of the table and took the two or so steps to his mother on wobbly legs. It was like she had issued him a dare and he couldn't back down. "Ma!" He squealed.

"Oh, my sweet, Jayme. You are such a big boy now." Rayna scooped him up and kissed him all over his face making him laugh in the process.

"They are both big boys now, momma." Deacon walked over to them with Deac still in his arms. He kissed Jayme's head. "Daddy's boy. That was so amazin'."

"I guess all either of them needed was a little motivation." Rayna laughed.

"Or they just weren't gonna do it 'til they were damn good and ready to." Deacon countered.

"They do take after their daddy and a certain older sister of theirs that way." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Deacon asked her.

"That means that you and Maddie have got to stop with this cold war that you're engaged in. She knows that she hurt you and she really is sorry for it." Rayna told him.

"I know that and I got up on stage with her last night. I'm tryin' with her, Ray. It'd been different if she truly was scared of me that I coulda dealt with. It's that she lied 'bout it to get what she wanted. She knew damn well how badly it'd hurt me, but she's my daughter and I want nothin' more than to work it out with her. I know that most of it wasn't her and I could tell how much it tore her apart to say it. Maybe a little part of me was lettin' her stew and have to worry 'bout whether or not I was gonna forgive her. I'll tell you what she took that judge's lesson to heart. She's been good as gold." Deacon admitted.

"It wasn't so much that the judge taught her a lesson as she got to see that bitch for who she really was and then she realized she almost threw away everything that matters for her. And I know that whatever happened with Vince Pierce really opened her eyes." Rayna chewed on her bottom lip.

"I don't know what I walked in on and he's probably lucky I didn't walk in sooner. All I know is he was standin' over the top of her and I saw red. I coulda killed that son of a bitch. I know that I can't use my fists to solve all my problems, but, babe, he got to runnin' his mouth and I had to let him have it once. I stopped after one punch. No man is gonna let another man talk 'bout his wife and daughter the way he was tryin' to talk 'bout you and Maddie. I just couldn't let it stand." Deacon sighed.

"Between you and me I think that you did the right thing. I think that Maddie needed to see you're not violent, but we will do what needs to be done to protect us. You are a man's man. I never feel safer than I do with you. And I hope that these two boys grow up to be every bit of the man their daddy is." Rayna smiled to ease his anxiety.

"So, what do you think I should do 'bout Maddie?" Deacon deferred to her judgement when it came to her.

"I think that you need to talk to her and you need to explain why what she said hurt you so badly. I'm so glad that she took it back though. I know it doesn't change the fact that she was prepared to say it to get her way, but it helps that in that moment she had an attack of conscience and changed her mind about it." Rayna leveled with him.

"Ok, I will talk to her." Deacon agreed.

"Deacon, talk to her tonight when she comes in. I know that you're real good at puttin' things off." Rayna gave him a look.

"I said I'd talk to her and I will." Deacon promised.

"Ok, let me put this to you in a way that will give you some motivation. I'm gonna go put these two little monkeys down in their nursery. After I do that I'm gonna get in the bathtub and soak. When I get out of the bathtub I may or may not feel the need to sleep in just a t-shirt tonight. The only way you get to find out if I have nothin' on under my t-shirt is if you talk to our daughter." Rayna laid down the law.

"Maddie and I will talk as soon as she gets home. And it really is not nice for you to tempt me with things that I can't have right away. You know that I'm a weak man and the thought of you without panties on drives me crazy." Deacon groaned.

"At least I know that you're gonna do what I asked you to do now." Rayna smirked at him and patted his cheek.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I might this just a light a fluffy chapter after all the angsts of the last few. Like I said things are gonna move quickly from here until the end of this story, but that's just to get us set up for the sequel. Until next time please review.


	97. Chapter 97

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 97

Maddie knocked on the door of her parents' office after she got home from the hockey game. She'd gotten a text from her dad that he wanted to see her when she got in. "You wanted to see me, dad."

Deacon looked up from his computer screen and waved her in. "Come in and have a seat, Princess."

Maddie smiled at hearing him call her by that nickname. It had been awhile since he'd used any term of endearment for her. "What do you need, dad?"

"I think that you and I need to talk." Deacon got up and sat down on the couch next to her.

"I know we can't keep putting it off forever." Maddie agreed.

"I'm not gonna lie to you. You hurt me very badly with what you said about me in court. I know that you didn't mean it and you took it back, but you still said it not because you believed it, but because you knew that it would help you get your way. Maybe I've been hangin' on to that hurt a little tighter than I should, but it just seems like the people I love are the ones that hurt me the most." Deacon put his hand on her knee.

"Daddy, I am so sorry about that. I regret that more than anything that I have ever said or done wrong. I know that you would never think about hurting me. You aren't violent and I don't feel unsafe around you. The only time I've ever seen you raise your hand was to protect me. And then you didn't get out of control you only hit him once and that was after you tried to walk away. I talked to my group of crazies about it and all the guys said the same thing if it had been their daughter they would have done exactly what you did. I didn't appreciate it at the time, but now I understand that you only drug me off that stage because that guy was feeling on my leg. The truth is you didn't embarrass me I embarrassed myself by getting up there and singing that horrible song." Maddie admitted to him.

"I worked long and hard to change to be the man that my family needed me to be. When you got up there on that stand and said that you were scared of me I felt like that was all for nothin'. I know firsthand what it's like to be scared of your daddy and I never wanted that for my babies. I wanted to be the one that you ran to, to feel safe when you got scared. I didn't want to be the one that scared you. I wanted to be your protector, so I'm sorry if you've ever for one second been scared of me or for me." Deacon apologized.

Maddie put her hand on top of his and laced their fingers together. Her eyes teared up. "Daddy, no, I'm not scared of you or for you. That night you found me in New York I learned that you truly meant it when you said there was no place so far that you wouldn't be there when we needed you. I know that you're my protector and I have nothing to fear from these hands. These are the hands that taught me how to play guitar long before either of us knew that I was yours. These are the hands I used to hold while I stood on the tops of your feet and you danced me around the stage in whatever venue mom was playing at the time. These are the hands of a man who works hard so the women in his life can have hands that look like they belong to a princess. I've never felt anything, but love and warmth from your hands. I know that you couldn't hit me even if you wanted to because of what Paul did to you. That's another thing I'm sorry for. I should have never gone to see him behind your back. I know how you feel about him and I know what he did to you, mawmaw, and Aunt Bev. He's not a good man." She picked his hand up and kissed it.

Deacon reached up and wiped a tear away from the corner of his eye. She finally saw him in the light that he'd been dying for her to see him in since the minute he found out she was his. She saw him as her daddy and not just as her father. "You're right 'bout that. I would have liked to have had a conversation 'bout you seein' Paul first. It's not that he's a bad man anymore like me he is a flawed man, but he is tryin' to do better. What he said in court proves that. So, if you wanna see him and spend some time with him that is up to you. I just always wanna know 'bout it beforehand. Like if you bump in to him on the street that ain't a big deal that's just life. I just wanna do the best I can to keep you safe. He's not as strong as I am with his sobriety I don't want you 'round him if I think he's havin' a slip."

"That's fair and I should have talked to you about it first I know that now. How come you never told me that you two have the same first name?" Maddie asked him.

"I never told you 'cause I've never been proud of it. I just tell everyone that I got my name from my pawpaw and that's not a lie his name was Deacon too, but so is Paul's. It's somethin' that I had to lock away to protect myself. I beat his crappy genetics I could beat the fact that I had his name too if I didn't think of it as comin' from him. I adored my pawpaw. He was the best man that I've ever met. I was proud I am still proud to be named after him and to have my son named after him. You wanna know somethin' that I never realized until right this moment?" Deacon replied.

"What's that, daddy? And for the record I think that you are the best man that I know." Maddie smiled at him.

"Your momma named you after my mawmaw." Deacon smiled back at her.

"Did she? I thought that she named me after her mom." Maddie looked confused.

"She did. Madison was Virginia's middle name. But Miranda was my Mawmaw Claybourne's name." Deacon informed her.

"That's really cool." Maddie sounded a little amazed.

"It is. Maddie, you can never do anythin' like you just did ever again. If you and I have a problem you gotta come to me and tell. I think that was the worst I've ever been hurt in my life. At least with Paul I knew the beatin' would finally stop once he got tired or too drunk to keep goin'. I even eventually saw your momma's reasonin' behind lyin' to me 'bout you. But, what you did it had no rhyme or reason to it. I couldn't understand what I did that was wrong enough to deserve that. And it killed me to think that you saw me in that light. I hated that you had to hear in court every bad thing that I've ever done. I wanted to be the one to tell you. That's my story to tell. I just gotta tell it bit by bit 'cause it is so painful." Deacon put his arm around her.

"I can do that, dad. It wasn't fair of them to blame the accident that you had with mom or the accident with Vince on you. You weren't the one driving. You didn't make either of them wreck. I know that it's painful for you. I could see it in your eyes that day in court and that was what finally broke me. You can barely tell us about it you shouldn't have had to talk about something so personal in front of so many people. That's why I stopped it they were hurting you." A tear spilled down her cheek.

Deacon wiped her tear away with the pad of his thumb and kissed her head. "That's when I knew you weren't as far gone as I'd thought you were. I knew my little girl, my young lady was still in there somewhere under the layer of bullshit that Cash had tried to feed ya."

"I'm gonna say this one last time and hope that maybe this can be the end of it. I'm sorry. I know that doesn't begin to cover it, but those are the only two words that describe what I'm feeling correctly." Maddie looked at him intently.

"Apology accepted. I can hear how genuine you are in your regret. I know that you won't ever do anythin' like that again." Deacon hugged her tight.

"Thank you, daddy, thank you." Maddie buried her face in his chest.

"Everythin' ok in here?" Rayna had let them have their moment, but she had been hanging out on the fringes just to make sure that they were actually going to talk things out.

"Everythin' is fine. We spoke our piece to each other and got it all fixed up good as new." Deacon smiled at her.

"That's what me and this baby girl wanted to hear. We were worried that daddy and sissy were gonna be upset with each other for a long time." Rayna rubbed her belly.

"Mom, is it true that you named me after your mom and dad's grandma?" Maddie asked her.

"It is very true. I'm surprised it took your daddy this long to figure it out. Maddie you would have loved her. She was so sweet and kind. I'm still trying to figure out how she raised a son like Paul. That goes for your Big Paw too I don't know how Paul came from either of them. Anyway I had to maneuver a little bit with Teddy when he asked me why I liked Miranda so much he wanted your middle name to be Marie after his grandmother, but I wanted you to have a little piece of your daddy even if neither of you knew it." Rayna explained.

"How come you never told me that?" Deacon asked her.

"You never asked." Rayna countered. She smiled when she saw Maddie yawn. "Maddie, go on to bed, baby girl. Things between you and your daddy are good again. You're practically fallin' asleep sitting there."

Maddie gave Deacon a big hug. "Goodnight, daddy." She got up and kissed Rayna's cheek. "Goodnight, mom." She left the room.

"You know, speakin' of names. I know what I wanna name this little girl. And I happen to think that it is absolutely perfect." Rayna smiled.

"Why don't you tell me and let me be the judge of that?" Deacon teased.

Rayna leaned over and whispered the name in his ear.

Deacon just smiled in response to that. "Now, what was that someone said about not wearin' any panties to bed?"

"Give me two minutes and you'll find out if I was bluffing or not." Rayna walked out with a little extra sway in her hips.

Deacon followed after her almost exactly two minutes later he made sure to lock the bedroom door behind him. He found her sprawled out on top of the covers. He crawled on top of her and pushed his hand up her t-shirt. True to her word she had nothing else on under it. She was already slick with anticipation and desire. "God, baby, you are soakin' wet."

"You know what these pregnancy hormones do to me." Rayna grinned at him.

Deacon wasted no time in shedding his clothes and taking her t-shirt off of her. He used his knee to spread her legs and he sank into her in one fluid motion. They both moaned out careful to keep it down because Maddie was home.

"Damn, babe, you feel so good." Rayna bit down on his shoulder to keep herself quiet as he moved in and out of her.

Deacon dipped his head to suck both her nipples. "God, these are gettin' bigger already." He worshiped her breasts with his mouth never pausing the rocking of his hips.

Rayna wrapped her long legs around his waist to draw him deeper into her. She ran her nails down his back leaving long angry scratches in their wake.

Deacon for his part continued with his slow beautiful torture of her breasts. He traced his tongue around her nipple before biting down on it gently. Once that nipple was as hard as a pebble he switched to the other side.

It didn't take long at all for either of them to reach their peak and when they did they came together their lips fused in order to keep as silent as possible.

* * *

August

"Deacon! Maddie! Daphne! One of ya'll come help me!" Rayna called out. She was on the couch going over paperwork for the office. They had been in off tour for a couple of weeks now because with as far along as she was in her pregnancy they couldn't take the chance of her going into labor out on the road.

"You rang?" Maddie came in the room and rolled her eyes. Rayna was about to drive all of them crazy being so needy.

"I can't find the remote and I need something to drink." Rayna's voice came out in a whine.

Maddie picked up the remote for her and put it in her hand. "Daphne! We need that lemonade. Stat! Her majesty is gonna have a meltdown." She yelled for her sister.

"I'm working as fast as I can, Maddie." Daphne called back.

"She'll be in here shortly. Where are dad and the boys?" Maddie tried to make conversation with her. She had to remind herself that her mother was actually a rational person and she wasn't like this when her hormones were under control. Still she hoped that this was her mother's last pregnancy or at the very least her last one until she was out of the house.

"He's got them outside they are fishin' in the lake. I swear their terrible twos came early. They are only eighteen months old and they are the two meanest little asses I've ever met in my life. I can't get any work done with them in here." Rayna shook her head.

Maddie stifled a laugh. "Mom, you can't call them names like that. You won't let me no matter how true what I say is and besides that most of the time they are both very sweet."

"I know they are and I didn't mean it. Everythin' is just on my nerves right now. Ugh, I want this girl outta me. She kicks my ribs, and my kidneys, and my back. She's Deacon spawn at least you and Daphne were both a lot calmer than this and those two boys were lazy. Not that they had much room." Rayna groused.

"Here you go, mom." Daphne handed her a glass of lemonade.

"Thank you, sweet girl. Ya'll I'm sorry that your momma is such a hormonal rage monster right now. I'm just hot, tired, and thirty-seven and a half months pregnant. At least that's what it feels like anyway. Your baby sister is wreaking havoc on me. I love her to death, but I will be so glad to have her out of me and have her in my arms." Rayna threw her head back. She threw down the papers that she was looking over. "Forget that Tandy and Bucky can handle it. They have been handling it just fine all summer without me."

Deacon and the boys came in through the door in the living room.

"Look, momma, Jayme wanted to show you the fish he caught." Deacon held up a perch for Rayna to examine.

"Jayme, that is so good. You and your brother are the best little fishin' buddies that your daddy could ask for." Rayna clapped for him. "Deacon John, you are drippin' water from that nasty fish all over my hardwood floors get it outta here please."

"Maddie, keep an eye on your brothers it's 'bout lunch time for them. I'll be right back." Deacon went back outside to throw the fish in the lake and gather up their fishing gear. He stowed it in the barn that was closest to the house.

Maddie and Daphne took the boys into the kitchen to get away from Rayna. She seemed to be content, but that was subject to change without any warning. They didn't want to be in her way if she got on the warpath again.

Deacon came in through the kitchen door to avoid his wife for a minute if possible. He saw that his daughters were locked in a hushed conference that appeared to be getting heated. "What's goin' on, ya'll?" He whispered.

Daphne gestured with her eyes to Deacon as if to tell Maddie to say something to him. "You're the oldest you've lived longest."

"Dad, you have got to do something about mom. She's out of control. I love her so much, but I want to kill her right now. She makes me long to either go back on tour or go to school. That should tell you how bad she is I hate school and I'd rather go there than be stuck here with her." Maddie pleaded with him.

"I think we can trade favors here. If I do somethin' 'bout your momma, then you and the Squirt are gonna have to babysit your brothers." Deacon bargained with them.

"I'll take that deal." Maddie offered him her hand.

"It's a deal then. You don't have to stay home with them. I'll leave you the keys to one of the other cars. I don't think your Jeep is big enough for both car seats. You can drive the old truck. If you touch my new truck or Betty, your momma will be the least of your worries. And tell your boyfriend that if I catch him on my Harley again we are gonna have words." Deacon was only joking about his motorcycle. He was dead serious about his truck and Rayna's beloved Mustang.

"I'm sure that we can find some way to entertain them. Just get her out of here." Maddie replied.

"I'm on it. And feed them boys." He called over his shoulder.

Deacon went upstairs and he threw some things in a duffle bag. Once that was done he went back downstairs and pulled Rayna up off the couch. "Come on, you and I are goin' out and we are gonna have a nice day today."

"Babe, I just wanna sit here on my fat pregnant ass and relax." Rayna whined.

"When we get where we're goin' you can sit on your gorgeous pregnant ass and relax all you want to." Deacon didn't let her argue with him he led her out to her SUV.

* * *

"Now, isn't this a lot more relaxin' than at home with four kids makin' all kinda noise?" Deacon sat in the front of his bass boat fishing and working the trolling motor. He'd brought her up to the cabin since it always put her in a good mood.

"This is amazing, baby and the breeze off the water is perfect." Rayna sighed in relief. She was laid out in the floor getting some sun.

"How you doin' back there? Do you want me to stop somewhere so you can get in the water and cool off?" Deacon cast his line back into the water. He wasn't really fishing so much as killing time.

"Now that would actually be perfect." Rayna wasn't going to argue with him on that one.

"Hold on just a minute. I know the perfect spot." Deacon used the pedal to raise the motor all the way up so he didn't damage it where he was about to go. He guided the boat into a little cove that had a sandbar where he could drop anchor and get his pregnant wife in and out of the boat easily. He dropped the anchors and then he helped Rayna up out of the floor.

He climbed out of the boat first so that he could help her down. "Watch your step, baby, I don't want you to fall." He just cut out the middle man and lifted her out of the boat.

"Deacon, be careful I'm not all that light right now." Rayna scolded him.

"You ain't as heavy as you think you are either. Baby, you were way bigger than this with the boys. You can smack me for sayin' it, but you look like the perfect adorable pregnant woman." Deacon kissed the tip of her nose.

Rayna wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his lips. "You make it absolutely impossible to stay mad at you. You're really great at sayin' just what I need to hear."

"Let's get you cooled off." Deacon took her hand and waded into the river with her.

"This is exactly what I've been needin'." Rayna's voice lost all hints of stress.

"I'm sorry that I didn't think of it sooner, baby. I know that you've been miserable with this pregnancy. And I know that I've been out on the road all summer. You've been with me, but still I know you would have rather have been home gettin' ready for Baby Girl to come." Deacon walked until he could no longer touch the bottom and then he started swimming.

Rayna started to float on her back. "Babe, I told you that it's your turn to shine and I meant it. I loved gettin' to be Mrs. Claybourne for a change instead of Rayna Jaymes, Queen of Country and worldwide superstar. I got to be a wife and a momma and I got to finish my album. Sure I still love tourin' don't get me wrong, but I think Maddie needed her momma more this summer than she needed someone that was distracted with tourin'. I have my whole life left to tour and play music. I don't have that much longer of her needin' me."

"I know I soak up every opportunity I can to be her daddy and dispense fatherly advice. And I really love the friendship she has struck up with Casey. Those two are really good for each other. They have a healthy rivalry and they push each other to be their best. And they include Daphne in some of their silly teenage girl antics. I don't know whether I should be thankful for that part or not. She's our sweet one I want her to stay that way." Deacon made a face.

"She will, but it's good that she has them to look up to and they are positive role models." Rayna replied.

"You know that sandbar over there last year is where we decided that we for sure wanted to have another baby." Deacon mentioned.

"For the life of me I don't know what we were thinkin'. I can't wait to hold this baby girl, but I want her outta me. The doctor said if she were to be born now she would be perfectly healthy. I'm prayin' she comes early." Rayna swam over to him.

"She'll come when she's supposed to. Her nursery is ready for her and everythin'. I'm really excited to have her in my arms too. Though I don't think for the same reasons as you." Deacon laughed a little.

* * *

After their time out on the river they headed back to the house to shower. Deacon took her to a nice dinner at a restaurant in town before they headed back home.

"Deacon," Rayna put her hand on Deacon's thigh and squeezed it.

"Yeah, babe?" Deacon looked over at her lustfully since they were still in the parking lot. He just figured that she was in the mood to get a little frisky. It had been awhile since she'd wanted sex. By awhile he meant three days, but still that was a record for them.

"You need to go home, but only long enough to get the hospital bag. I'm pretty sure I'm in labor and I'm not joking about that." Rayna was serious as a heart attack.

"Ray, fuck goin' home we are goin' to the hospital right now. I will call and have your bag brought up. Actually, I take that back your bag is already in here. I'm gonna get you to the hospital and then I'm gonna call everyone that I need to call. I think I'll just have Rhett go stay at the house with the boys that way that ain't gotta be drug outta the house." Deacon pointed the car in the direction of the hospital.

"I'm not even gonna argue with you right now." Rayna was so thankful to be getting that baby out of her. She called her OBGYN and let her know what was going on.

By the time they reached the hospital and got checked in Rayna's doctor was already there and they were taken up to labor and delivery right away.

"Ok, Rayna, it looks like this little girl is gonna be an easy one. I would say this is a case of rapid labor, so if you want an epidural I'd recommend getting it now so it's effective." Dr. Monroe told her after she finished her exam.

"I'll take that now." Rayna agreed.

"I thought you might say that." Dr. Monroe chuckled.

"Yeah, my princess here she ain't big on pain." Deacon hadn't left her side since she'd been admitted.

"You did this to me, I don't wanna hear it." Rayna glared at him.

"I'll send them in right now to give you that epidural." Dr. Monroe took her feet out of the stirrups and patted her knee.

"Ray, Tandy is on her way right now. She was headed up here the minute she hung up the phone with me. I assume that you want your sister here for this." Deacon told her.

"Yeah, I want my sister. I need my sister. I can't do this without either one of you. You're the love of my life and she's the closest I can get to havin' my momma here." Rayna smiled at him for being so understanding.

"Geeze, Babe, no reason to get all sentimental I'm here." Tandy rushed into the room and took her other hand.

"Dr. Monroe said this one is gonna be a walk in the park." Deacon reported.

"Good, she's never really had a difficult labor though. Even those boys came out easy and there were two of them." Tandy replied.

"Same deal as last time? You catch me if I look like I'm 'bout to pass out?" Deacon joked.

"You're not gonna pass out. You'll handle this just fine." Tandy laughed at him.

"It is so weird for me to see you two get along. Ow!" Rayna squeezed both their hands as hard as she could as she was hit by another contraction. Shortly after that they came in to give her the epidural.

Three hours later at one in the morning their little girl came into the world screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Do you wanna cut the cord, daddy?" The nurse asked Deacon.

"I sure do." Deacon took the scissors and snipped his daughter's cord.

"Go watch them clean your daughter up. I've got my sister under control." Tandy told him. She wiped the sweat off of Rayna's brow.

Deacon walked over and watched as they cleaned his baby girl. The NICU doctor that they had on standby ran a couple of tests and took her vitals before giving her a clean bill of health. She was five weeks early and they wanted to error on the side of caution. The nurse swaddled her and put a cap on her head.

"Deacon, how is she?" Rayna called out to him.

"In a word, perfect." Deacon was absolutely taken with his daughter and he hadn't even gotten a good look at her yet.

"Well, I guess you'll be wanting her now, won't you?" The nurse laughed at him.

"You bet he does. This guy is father of the year material. Tell me that any of you have ever seen a daddy as involved as he is." Dr. Monroe added good naturedly.

"Can I hold her now?" Deacon asked.

"She's yours, daddy, love on her all you want to." The nurse placed her in his arms gently.

"Hi, my little princess, I'm your daddy. Yes, I am. I'm that big silly guy that talked to you all the time while you were in momma's belly." Deacon marveled at how she felt like a feather in his arms. He counted all of her fingers and toes before he placed a kiss on her forehead.

Rayna had known the instant the nurse placed her daughter in her husband's arms. She could see his face in the mirror and a look of pure joy and happiness had appeared. It was different than the look that had been on his face when their sons were born.

Deacon very carefully carried her over to Rayna's side. "Look at what we did, momma. She sure is gorgeous." He showed her to Rayna.

"Deacon, she is beautiful." Tandy gushed.

"Oh my God, she looks so much like Maddie did." Rayna teared up. It still killed her to think that he had missed this with Maddie.

"She's a little bit smaller than Maddie was, but she has some long legs." Tandy added.

"She's got all ten fingers and toes. She got guitar playin' fingers just like her daddy or maybe piano playin' fingers like her momma. They are long and slender." Deacon didn't once take his eyes off his new daughter.

"You gonna let me hold her or are you gonna keep her all to yourself?" Rayna joked lightly.

"Here you go, momma." Deacon placed her in her mother's arms.

"Look at you, little one, you are so perfect." Rayna kissed her daughter.

Deacon pecked Rayna's lips softly. "Thank you for my incredible baby girl, Ray."

"No, thank you, for my wonderful daughter." Rayna replied.

"Rayna, do you wanna try to breast feed her?" Dr. Monroe asked.

"Yeah, I'll give it a try." Rayna undid the snaps on the shoulder of her hospital gown and lifted the baby to her breast. She got latched on right away with no problem.

"I'm just gonna go call everyone and tell them that it's safe to come up now. I think Bucky has been in the waiting room the whole time." Tandy excused herself.

* * *

About an hour later after Rayna had had a chance to clean up and they'd taken the baby to the nursery to take her vitals then brought her back Maddie and Daphne came in. The boys were still with Rhett they were going to wait until a more reasonable hour to have him bring them up.

"Hi, my babies," Rayna smiled at them. She sat up in her bed with the baby in her arms. She of course looked camera ready despite the face she'd just had a baby.

"She is so tiny." Maddie remarked.

"She's even smaller than either of the boys were." Daphne added.

"She fits in the palm of my hand." Deacon informed them.

"What's her name?" Daphne asked. They had kept her name under wraps.

"Maddie, Daphne, I would like for you to meet your new baby sister. Charleston Virginia Claybourne." Rayna told them. They had named her Charleston because that was the city they'd found out she was pregnant in and because that was June's maiden name. Virginia was obviously for Rayna's mother.

"Charlie for short." Deacon chimed in.

"He's adamant that you know that we are gonna call her Charlie. That's in addition to whatever nickname he decides to cook up for her." Rayna laughed.

"Deac and Jayme are Outlaw and Rebel she may be something crazy like Calamity Jane." Maddie suggested.

"Maddie, do not give him any ideas. He doesn't need any help at all. I've got Princess, Squirt, Outlaw, and Rebel. I have no hopes of this child havin' a normal nickname." Rayna groaned.

"Charlie is Pistol. 'Cause she is a little a pistol. Every time I put any part of my body on your momma's belly she would go crazy." Deacon laughed.

"God help me." Rayna just shook her head at him.

"Who wants to hold their baby sister?" Deacon asked excitedly.

"Daph, you hold her first. She's your first baby sister." Maddie told her.

"Ok," Daphne sat down in the chair and Deacon put Charlie in her arms. "Hi, Charlie, I'm your sister Daphne. I have so many cute outfits to dress you up in. We are gonna have so much fun together."

Once Daphne was finished holding Charlie Maddie took her turn. "Hey, little girl, I'm your biggest sister Maddie. I'm really sorry for all the stress that I put you under for a while there. I promise you that I'm always here for you anytime that you need anything."

Deacon had to scrub at his eyes with his knuckles to fight off the tears that stung them.

Later that morning Rhett showed up with the boys. "We are here to see our baby sister. Though I'm pretty sure it was the we were gonna see momma and daddy part that got them to finally cooperate."

"Come here, little men." Deacon took his sons and sat them on the bed next to Rayna. "This is your baby sister." He pointed at Charlie who was sleeping in her crib.

"Sissy, sissy." Deac sounded off like a little parrot.

"Bebe," Jayme squealed.

"That's right, boys. That is your baby sister. You are both so smart." Rayna praised them.

"You two can give her kisses if you're gentle." Deacon picked each of the boys up and let them kiss Charlie's head. "That was very sweet of you."

Rhett shifted his weight from foot to foot. "Ya'll wouldn't mind if I held my niece would ya?"

"Of course not, Rhett, don't be silly. We would love for you to hold her. She's gotta get that bond in with her uncle." Rayna assured him.

"Just wash your hands and have a seat." Deacon told him.

Rhett washed his hands in the sink that was in the room and then he sat down in the chair. He very gently cradled Charlie against his chest when his brother put her in his arms. "Hey, sweet pea, I'm your Uncle Rhett. God, do you look like me and your daddy you poor baby." He kissed her head.

"She is gorgeous just like you and her daddy." Rayna corrected him.

"Look at that, Ray, she loves her godfather already. She didn't even wake up and she snuggled into his chest." Deacon smiled.

"What? You want me to be her godfather?" Rhett grinned from ear to ear.

"Of course we do. We couldn't think of anyone better for the job than her only uncle." Rayna smiled back at him.

Deacon just stood back and watched for a minute. If things got any better than this he was gonna have to pinch himself.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I told you that things were going to be moving at a faster pace from here on out. I wanted us to get a good three or four chapters in with baby Charlie before the next story. I think ya'll are going to enjoy what I have planned. I just can't give up on the characters that we've all come to know and love yet. Until next time please review.


	98. Chapter 98

A/N:Thanks to all my reviewers.

* * *

Chapter 98

"There's my gorgeous new granddaughter." June walked into the hospital room.

"Look at that she ain't even actin' like she came to see us." Deacon laughed.

"I didn't come to see you. I came to see my granddaughter and my beautiful daughter-in-law." June winked at him. She washed her hands so she could hold the baby.

"Babe, you're just the daddy no one is concerned about you right now." Rayna teased him.

"I see how it is." Deacon pretended to be hurt.

"Hush, Deacon John." June picked the baby up and cradled her. "Well, hello, pretty girl. You look so much like your daddy. He passed down all those strong Claybourne genes to you. What's your name? Your momma and daddy have been keepin' it a secret."

"Momma, that's your new granddaughter Charleston Virginia. Charlie for short." Deacon reported proudly.

"Oh, you two did not have to do that." June was very touched.

"We wanted to do it, June." Rayna smiled at her.

"Hello, little Charlie Claybourne, I'm your mawmaw. I'm gonna spoil you rotten. Yes, I am." June cooed at her.

"That's all she needs is one more person that's gonna spoil her, momma." Deacon laughed.

"Of course she needs all the spoilin' she can get. She's got two older brothers and they are just gonna ruin all her fun." June kissed the baby's head.

"I feel sorry for this poor girl when she starts datin' not only does she have a super protective daddy she's got two brothers that are gonna be just as bad as he is." Rayna didn't even want to think about her dating ever. It had come on way too soon with Maddie and Daphne wasn't far behind.

"She ain't allowed to date 'til I'm dead." Deacon put his foot down.

"Good luck with that, Deacon John." June just shook her head at him.

"I don't need luck I've just spent the last few months havin' extensive talks with her 'bout it. She understands that she can't date." Deacon retorted.

"Let's cross that bridge when we get there, babe. Right now our only worries with her are two AM feedings and dirty diapers." Rayna called him down.

"You're right that stuff I can handle." Deacon agreed.

"Baby girl, you're mawmaw is so sorry that you got stuck with such a crazy daddy. I didn't raise him to be this crazy it just kinda happened." June spoke to Charlie softly.

* * *

"There's my breakfast date." JC was waiting on the front porch when Maddie pulled up in her Jeep.

"Hey, babe, I'm so damn happy to see you that it isn't funny." Maddie wrapped her arms around his neck.

"So, how's your new baby sister?" JC asked after he had kissed her.

"She's absolutely perfect. And as her future brother-in-law it is your job to make sure no boy ever even looks at her." Maddie pulled out her phone and showed him pictures.

"She's gorgeous just like her sister." JC smiled.

"I think she looks way more like dad than I do. And you should see him, Jimmy. He is so in love with that little girl. It's so cute, but at the same time it sparks these irrational feelings of jealousy in me. He never got to act that way over me. He wasn't there when I was born. And I know exactly how this sounds. Even if he had been there for all of that I wouldn't be able to remember it anyway. Dad and I worked really hard all summer to put our relationship back together after I did my best to blow it apart. So I can't say to him what I'm about to say to you. At this point it feels like he's just my father instead of my dad." Maddie unloaded everything that was on her chest.

"Maddie, no one can tell you what to feel. It is alright for you to feel that way. It's ok for you to express the way you're feelin'. You just said yourself that you can't explain why you feel that way. It's not like this is somethin' you're doin' to be malicious. You love your baby sister and you're proud of her. Let me tell you somethin' else. Deacon is more than just your father he is your dad too. It don't matter that he ain't the one that was there when you were little. What matters is since he found out 'bout you he's been there every other time you've needed him even when you didn't particularly deserve it, 'cause that is what a daddy does." JC talked some sense into her.

"That right there is why I say you're too perfect. I have yet to see a single character flaw from you." Maddie pecked his lips.

"I told you that you need to stop settin' that bar so high. When I finally do prove to you that I'm only human you're gonna get more disappointed in me than you should." JC warned her.

"At this point I don't think that there is anything you could do to disappoint me." Maddie smiled up at him.

"Just be glad that I don't plan on puttin' that theory to the test. Come on, let's get a move on. We are meetin' Wee Willy and Mack Attack for breakfast." JC took her hand and led her to his truck.

"Are they aware that you call them those names?" Maddie climbed up in his truck.

"I'm pretty sure they know and I don't care what they think 'bout 'em." JC started the truck up and drove them to the diner where they were meeting Will and Mack.

Will and Mack were already seated in a booth when they walked inside.

"It's 'bout damn time that you two got here. I was startin' to think that you were more interested in havin' each other for breakfast than you were in meetin' us for breakfast." Will gave them a hard time like usual.

"Will, why is it impossible for you and JC to be in the same room without getting into it?" Mack rolled his eyes at him.

"That would be 'cause we are best friends and that is how we talk to each other." JC sat down after Maddie slid into the booth.

"That's not how Maddie and I talk to each other or how Rhett and I talk to each other for that matter." Mack pointed out to him.

"Mack, I think it's a Texan thing with them and we just need to let it go." Maddie advised him.

"There's no comparison there you and Maddie are more like girlfriends and Rhett is gettin' his cradle robbed by Sadie." Will threw out there.

"Will, you are such an ass when you want to be. I can't believe I've been with you for a year." Mack shook his head.

"There must be somethin' that you like 'bout me or you woulda been gone a long time ago." Will looked down at his crotch.

"Will, don't be gross." Maddie slapped his hand playfully.

"I'm only tellin' the truth. Mack can't get enough of me." Will bragged.

"Mack, do you want me to arrange to have him taken out for ya? I can make it happen." JC offered.

"No, I kinda like the pervert I think I'll keep him." Mack laughed. "Ok, Maddie, enough of those two. Let me see pictures of her."

"Mack, she is so adorable. Just look at her." Maddie showed him all the pictures she had of Charlie.

"Look at that girl. She looks like her daddy. I know what she's gonna do when she grows up. She is gonna break hearts." Mack replied.

"I know she looks so much like dad. Right now it kinda looks like she has mom's ears, but that's about it." Maddie pointed out.

"What's this one's nickname? I know Deacon has to have something good that he came up with." Will asked.

"It's Pistol. Don't ask me why he's calling her that, but it makes sense to him." Maddie laughed.

"That's a badass nickname. Deacon is really good at this." JC liked it.

"You would think so, babe." Maddie took his hand and laced their fingers together.

* * *

Deacon eased his truck out onto the road as he left the hospital parking lot. He was carrying precious cargo in his backseat so he wanted to be as careful as possible.

"Deacon, you can drive a little faster than this." Rayna said from the backseat. She had opted to ride in back with the baby.

"I know I'm just bein' careful. I don't wanna make any jerky movements and scare her." Deacon replied.

"Babe, if you don't speed up a little bit she's gonna be startin' school by the time we get home." Rayna laughed at him. The difference between how he was with the boys and how he was with Charlie was almost comical. She had known that he would be a lot more protective of a little girl.

"Ok, I see your point. I just wanna get us home safely." Deacon checked his mirror and got over.

"You will, babe. I would just like to get home sometime today." Rayna was eager to get home from the hospital.

He got them home without incident.

"Easy, Ray, easy. You are supposed to be takin' it easy. I'll get Charlie and take her inside." Deacon jumped out of the truck and opened the back door for his wife. He helped her down before he grabbed Charlie's car seat.

"Deacon, you ain't gotta treat me like fine china I ain't gonna break. I had an extremely easy birth the only reason I had to stay in the hospital overnight is because of my age." Rayna assured him.

"I know, but I rather be safe than sorry. You're gonna go in there, sit on the couch, and not move unless you absolutely have to." Deacon told her.

Rayna snorted at that. "We both know that I'll do what I wanna do."

"And you'll land yourself right back in the hospital away from all your babies. I don't think that's somethin' you want." Deacon countered.

"Damn it, I hate it when you're right. Just open the damn door." Rayna sighed in resignation.

Deacon opened the door and he smiled when Rayna gasped in surprise.

Strung across the banister for the staircase was a banner that read Welcome Home Charlie.

"What did you do?" Rayna looked at her husband.

"This wasn't me. This was our children." Deacon pointed at Maddie, Daphne, Deac, and Jayme.

"Ya'll didn't have to do all this." Rayna told them.

"We didn't really do anything, mom." Maddie replied.

"We just wanted Charlie to feel at home." Daphne explained.

"She knows how loved she is." Deacon assured them. He took Charlie out of her carrier and held her close to his chest.

"Hi, Charwe." Deac greeted his baby sister.

"Luv you, bebe." Jayme added.

"Goodness, I don't think that we could ask for better kids, Deacon. We must be doin' somethin' right." Rayna's eyes teared up.

"I know we are." Deacon kissed her temple. "So, what do you wanna do first change clothes or go sit down?"

"I wanna go change into my pajamas and get cleaned up a little bit." Rayna said after she thought it over.

"Mom, if you need help I can help you." Maddie offered.

"Actually, can you watch the baby while your daddy helps me?" Rayna asked.

"We can do that, mom." Daphne held out her arms for Charlie. "Maddie, I'll take Charlie and you can watch the boys they listen to you better."

"That's fine." Maddie agreed.

Deacon handed Charlie to Daphne. "Be careful and support her little head." He said out of reflex. "Oh who am I kiddin' you probably know what you're doin' better than I do at this point."

"Come on, babe. Help me upstairs." Rayna held her hand out to him.

Deacon took her hand and helped her up the stairs and to the bedroom. "Here we are, babe. Do you want to shower or do you just wanna change clothes?"

"A shower would be incredible right now. You don't mind helping me in?" Rayna asked him.

"Of course I don't mind. You took care of me when I could barely get around after my surgery. We are married this is what we do for each other." Deacon reassured her. He went into the bathroom and got everything ready so she could take a shower. "Do you need help gettin' undressed?"

"No, I've got it." Rayna sat down on top of the toilet seat and undressed. "I'm ready now."

Deacon helped her into the shower and he sat on the toilet while she got cleaned up. He wrapped a towel around her when she was ready to get out and he brought her some pajamas to change into. "How do you feel now?" He asked once she was dressed.

"I feel much better. Thank you, babe." Rayna smiled at him.

"You're welcome, Ray. I guess we better get back down to them babies." Deacon took her hand.

"We can't leave those two girls on the mercy of a newborn and their bad ass brothers for too long." Rayna joked.

"Ray, those boys ain't as bad as you make 'em out to be." Deacon laughed and walked downstairs with her. "Alright, now you just sit here on this couch and relax I will do all the work."

"Those boys are absolutely as bad as I make them out to be, but I love 'em anyway. And you don't have to do everything. I'm capable of getting up if I have to." Rayna pointed out. "Now, I want all my babies."

"Well, ya'll heard her. She wants you." Deacon told his children.

Maddie wrangled up the boys and sat them on the couch with Rayna. Daphne handed her Charlie. The older two girls sat on either side of their mother next to one of their brothers.

"There are all my babies." Rayna smiled at them.

"I think that has to be the most perfect thing I've ever seen in my life." Deacon had to swallow a lump in his throat to speak. He snapped a picture on his phone and made it his screensaver.

"Here, dad, give me your phone and get in here with us. I'll take a selfie." Maddie took his phone.

Deacon sat down and put his arm around his family.

Maddie took the picture and handed his phone back to him.

"I look like hell that picture better not end up on the internet." Rayna warned them.

"Ray, Rusty handles all of that. You know that I can barely do it." Deacon reminded her.

"Knowin' you the way I do you might do it on accident." Rayna teased.

"I ain't postin' that picture you can relax." Deacon assured her.

"I have somethin' that you can do right now. I'm pretty sure that your daughter needs a clean diaper. You can go change her. I'm gonna assume that smell ain't comin' from either of the older girls or the boys." Rayna held Charlie up for him to take her.

Deacon took her into his arms. "Come here, stinker. Wow, what are we feedin' you? Let's go get you changed." He carried her upstairs to the nursery and changed her diaper. While they were up there a knock sounded on the front door. He carried Charlie downstairs to find Paul there.

"DJ, I don't wanna intrude or anythin', but I got Charlie a little somethin' and I wanted to drop it off." Paul held a box wrapped in pink paper.

"You ain't intrudin'. Come on in." Deacon smiled.

"I only have a minute. I gotta get to work soon." Paul replied.

Deacon led him into the living room.

"Well, hey, Paul." Rayna greeted him.

"Rayna, you look pretty good for a woman that just had a baby." Paul told her.

"Thank you for lyin' I know that I look like hell." Rayna replied. "Can you boys say hi to Paul?" She asked Deac and Jayme.

"Hi, Pa," Deac grinned.

"Hi, Pa," Jayme parroted after his brother.

Paul handed the box to Rayna. "This is for Charlie."

"Thanks," Rayna smiled at him.

"Paul, did you wanna hold her?" Deacon asked.

"Sure, if it ain't too much trouble." Paul replied.

"Course not. Have a seat." Deacon waved him into the recliner he sat in every time he was there. He handed Charlie to him. "Support her head and neck."

"I know, DJ. I did this a time or two before." Paul handled Charlie delicately. "Look on you, pretty girl. Your daddy is gonna have to be on that front porch with a shotgun to keep the boys away from you."

"Charlie, that's your Pa." Deacon told his daughter. It was what the boys called him because they couldn't quite say Paul.

Rayna opened up the box and took out a pair of white cowboy boots. "Oh, Paul, these are adorable. Thank you so much."

"You're welcome. I didn't know what to get her and I thought that would be as good as anythin' else I could come up with." Paul didn't take his eyes off the baby. He was quite taken with his granddaughter. Then again he'd always doted on Scarlett.

"You can never go wrong with cowboy boots in this house. One of us has a closet full of shoes that cost a normal person three months' salary plus many different pairs of boots and the other one of us has 'bout five different pairs of cowboy boots." Deacon added.

"Don't start in on my closet." Rayna warned him.

"Babe, I would never dream of it." Deacon laughed.

"Yes you would. I still don't know how you two spend all summer together on a tour bus without killing each other." Maddie corrected him.

"It's somethin' that we have gotten very good at thank you very much." Deacon pretended to be offended.

* * *

" _There's two things I know for sure. She was sent here from heaven and she's daddy's little girl. As I drop to me knees by her bed at night she talks to Jesus and I close my eyes and I think God for all of the joy in my life. Oh but most of all."_ Deacon sang to Charlie softly. He had her laid over his shoulder and he was dancing around with her in her nursery after he'd gotten her ready for bed. He laid a gentle kiss on her head and rubbed her back.

" _For butterfly kisses after bedtime prayer. Stickin' little white flowers all up in her hair. Walk beside the pony daddy it's my first ride. I know the cake looks funny daddy but I sure tried. Oh, with all that I've done wrong I must have done somethin' right. To deserve a hug every morning and butterfly kisses at night."_ He swayed back and forth gently.

Rayna stood in the doorway watching them with a smile on her face.

"He's so in love with her isn't he, mom?" Maddie walked up beside her and spoke lowly.

"He really is. That doesn't mean that he loves you or Daphne any less though." Rayna assured her.

"Do you think he'll ever look at me the way he looks at her? Or did I damage us beyond repair?" Maddie asked.

"Oh, baby girl, you have no idea just how much your daddy loves you. He didn't get this part with you because you were a teenager when he found out. That was my fault and I can't tell you how sorry I am. But, he has always looked at you that way you just haven't noticed." Rayna kissed her temple.

Deacon turned at the sound of their voices and looked like a little boy with his hand caught in a cookie jar.

Rayna pointed at Maddie with her eyes and gave him a look that he seemed to understand.

Deacon pointed at Maddie and waved her over.

Maddie walked into the nursery.

Deacon put his arm around her and started dancing with her too. _"Sweet sixteen today. She's lookin' like her momma a little more every day one part woman the other part girl. To perfume and makeup from ribbons and curls. Trying her wings out in a great big world, but I remember. Butterfly kisses after bedtime prayer stickin' little white flowers all up in her hair. You know how much I love you daddy but if you don't I'm only gonna kiss you on the cheek this time. Oh with all I've done wrong I must have done something right to deserve her love every morning and butterfly kisses at night."_ He sang to Maddie.

At that point he saw that Daphne was standing in the doorway looking a little lost and he waved her in too. He managed to get his arm around her and Maddie.

" _Oh precious time. Oh like the wind the years go by. Precious butterfly. Spread your wings and fly."_ He kept singing to his girls.

" _She'll change her name today. She'll make a promise and I'll give her away. Standing in the bride room just staring at her. She asks me what I'm thinkin' and I said I'm not sure. I just feel like I'm losing my baby girl. And she leaned over. Gave me butterfly kisses with her momma there stickin' little white flowers all up in her hair. Walk me down the aisle daddy it's just about time. Does my wedding gown look pretty daddy? Daddy don't cry. Oh with all that I've done wrong I must have done something right. To deserve her love every morning and butterfly kisses. I couldn't ask God for more man this is what love is. I know I gotta let her go, but I'll always remember every hug in the morning and butterfly kisses."_ He finished the song and he kissed all three of his daughters.

Rayna had to wipe her tears away. Seeing him with those girls always melted her. He showed his kinder gentler side when he was with them. He was amazing with their sons, but there was obviously a special place in his heart for their daughters.

"Now, ya'll get on to bed." Deacon told the older two girls.

"Night, dad, I love you." Maddie kissed his cheek.

Daphne stood up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "I love you, daddy."

"I love ya'll too." Deacon blew them a kiss.

Rayna walked over and wrapped her arm around his waist. "Deacon, you are so damn adorable with your girls."

"I love 'em all so much, Ray. I love all my kids, but my girls know that they got me right where they want me. Even this little one here already realizes what a pushover her daddy is when it comes to her." Deacon rubbed Charlie's back and leaned into Rayna's side.

"They are all daddy's girls even the biggest one." Rayna pointed out to him.

"How is Maddie? Is she doin' ok with this? I don't want her to feel left out or like I love her any less." Deacon asked.

"I think she was feelin' a little left out, but you just eased all of her fears. You two are always gonna have that gap between you, not because you aren't close, but because you didn't have those formative years together. That's my fault. It's nothing that either one of you did." Rayna sighed.

"Hey, I told you. Don't beat yourself up, 'bout that for the rest of your life. The past is the past there's nothin' that we can do to change it. We can sure as hell build a better future together though. We are buildin' that future together right now." Deacon told her.

"I love you so damn much." Rayna kissed him deeply.

"I love you too." Deacon said once he broke the kiss. "Let's get on in the bedroom. Little Pistol here is gonna wanna eat 'fore she goes night-night."

Rayna laughed. "You're really serious about calling her that aren't you?"

"I'm dead serious, darlin'. This girl is livin' up to that name already. Haven't you noticed that she hates bein' swaddled cause she can't get to her hands. She throws a fit if I wrap her up too tight." Deacon smiled.

"She's just like her daddy that way. She gets loud and mad when she don't get her way." Rayna joked with her.

"Damn right she is. She just got all those good Claybourne genes." Deacon hid his amusement.

* * *

Rayna walked downstairs after waking up. The fact that she didn't hear two little boys and two teenaged girls making all kind of noise alarmed her a little bit. The house was never completely quiet with those four around. Not to mention her newborn shouldn't be that quiet. She had a set of pipes that she liked to put to good use. She heard a soft melody coming from the music room and she decided to investigate.

Deacon sat on the piano bench playing his guitar. He looked stared at the baby like she was the most beautiful thing in the world. Charlie was in her baby swing right next to him and he was singing to her. One of his favorite things to do was make up songs for his kids to keep them entertained.

Rayna kept herself hidden because she didn't want him to know that she was watching him just yet.

" _Life is full of ups and downs and I can't change the world around. The only thing that I can do is always keep on lovin' you."_ He paused to run his finger gently over Charlie's soft hair. _"Yes, life is full of ups and downs and I can't change the world around. The only thing that I can do is anythin' you want me to. The only thing that I can do is always keep on lovin' you."_ He finished singing softly.

"That was really beautiful, babe." Rayna made her presence known.

"That was somethin' that just came to me." Deacon blushed. He was a tad bit embarrassed that she had caught him yet again being so enamored with their daughter.

"Don't blush I thought it was amazing. So good in fact I think you need to put it on track and release it. I know we have those songs that we keep just for us, but it would be a shame if the rest of the world didn't hear that one." Rayna gave him her opinion.

"I'll take that into consideration." Deacon agreed to at least think about it.

"Where are the rest of our children anyway?" Rayna asked.

"The boys are spendin' time with their mawmaw and pawpaw. Don't ask because I'm not sure that I wanna know. Daphne is hangin' out at the mall with her friends. And Maddie is in the studio with Casey. The last one should scare you as much as it does me. You know how those two are together." Deacon ran down the list.

"So, it's just daddy and Charlie spending the morning together." Rayna smiled.

"That 'bout covers it. Daddy and Charlie are havin' bondin' time together. I think she enjoys it just as much as I do." Deacon replied. He was really great about making sure that all of his kids got that one on one time with him. It was important to him that none of them feel left out.

"That's daddy's little girl of course she does. Why did you let me sleep so late?" Rayna asked him.

"I figured that you needed it. There's no shame in sleepin' when you're that tired. I know that Pistol wakes up quite a few times through the night wantin' to eat. You know that I like to spoil you, so you might as well just get used to it." Deacon shrugged his shoulders.

"I'll tell you what. I'm gonna spend some time with you two then I'm gonna get out of this house for a little while. I'm about to go stir crazy. I think I'll head down to the studio and check on Maddie and Casey. I'm not sure I wanna know what they are up to. I have to worry about them almost as much as I have to worry about Juliette." Rayna replied.

"I don't think that they are as bad as Juliette yet. I think they have the potential to get there though. As good as they are for each other they are hell on wheels together. I don't how the rest of their band of crazies puts up with 'em." Deacon laughed.

"For teenage girls they are pretty well behaved. We should just be thankful for that. After the whole mess with Cash anything is an improvement." Rayna pointed out to him.

"You've got that right." Deacon couldn't argue with her on that one.

Elvis lifted his head off of his paws and looked at them for daring to disturb his sleep. He was laying underneath Charlie's swing. He was very good about watching over her and the boys. Though he was more Deac's dog than anyone's. He slept right beside his crib at night.

Rayna reached down and rubbed his head. "Sorry to disturb you, old man. I see you're just as taken with this little girl as everyone else is."

"When he needs a break he comes and hangs out with Charlie. She don't cause him hassle like those boys do. I mean sure they drop food for him all the time, but they also try to ride him like a horse." Deacon laughed. Elvis had been a really great dog for them. He was supposed to me Maddie and Daphne's dog, but they had given up on him a long time ago.

"He's not stupid, he knows where to go to take cover." Rayna replied. "Is there coffee?"

"I put on a fresh pot for you and it's still warm." Deacon reported.

"Would you and Charlie like to join me in the kitchen?" Rayna knew what his answer would be. She reached down and picked Charlie up out of the swing. "Hi, baby girl."

"We'd love to join ya, babe." Deacon slipped his arm around her waist and stole a kiss from her.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. You got just another light fluffy chapter out of me this time. We have two chapters left to wrap this thing up and move on. So they will all be this light and carefree. I have to save some drama for the next story. Until next time please review.


	99. Chapter 99

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. The song used in this chapter is Angry All the Time by Tim McGraw.

* * *

Chapter 99

"Alright, Maddie, you are the third generation musician tell me why after fifteen takes this song still doesn't sound right." Casey threw her feet up on the table in the sound booth.

"Maybe it would sound better if someone hadn't been running around last night like she was on girls gone wild." Maddie suggested to her.

"I will have you know that I was home early last night." Casey pushed her shoulder playfully.

"Home early for you means three in the morning, Casey. That's after God alone knows how many drinks you were able to con out of people." Maddie pushed her back.

"I was home when I called you the last time. I was totally innocent last night for a change." Casey informed her.

"Casey, you and the word innocent don't belong in the same sentence." Maddie rolled her eyes.

"Believe it or not I do know how to behave myself." Casey retorted.

"I don't believe it at all. I know how you can get." Maddie pointed out.

"I have better things to do than argue with you. I need to get this song recorded so I can finish my album. Rayna is only gonna jump my ass 'bout it the first chance she gets." Casey replied.

"I think she's too busy to be worried about what you're doing right now." Maddie knew first hand that her mom had her hands full.

"Right, 'cause ya'll are like the Brady Bunch." Casey laughed.

"Shut up," Maddie huffed at her.

"You shut up." Casey gave her a look.

"If I didn't know any better I would swear that Will and Jimmy were in here carrying on." Rayna walked into the booth.

"Rayna," Casey sat up.

"Mom, what are you doing here?" Maddie asked.

"I came to see what you two were up to. It's a good thing I did, because from the looks of it you are more concerned with trading insults than you are recording music." Rayna arched her eyebrow.

"That's because Casey here can't get her song down the way she wants it and things kinda spun out of control from there." Maddie explained.

"Nothing that you two do together surprises me." Rayna shook her head at them. She loved that they were just typical teenaged girls when they were together.

"Then you'll believe that this is all Maddie's fault." Casey chimed in.

"I don't put anything past either one of you." Rayna replied. "Now, for the real reason I'm here. As you two know the Mile Marker is going to be celebrating one year in business soon and I was hoping that you would both be willing to play that night."

"Count me in." Casey agreed readily.

"You know I'll be there." Maddie added. It wasn't like she had much of a choice in the matter.

"Good, that brings me to something else I wanted to talk to you both about. I'm sure that ya'll remember how Deacon, Sadie, and I won that award for Something Bad. It got released as a single, but it was never recorded on anyone's album. I talked it over with Deacon and we decided that you two would be the best two people to record it." Rayna told them.

"No way, are you serious right now?" Casey grinned.

"Mom, that is awesome." Maddie squealed.

"I'm gonna take that as a yes." Rayna laughed at their enthusiasm.

"We may be a little crazy sometimes, but we ain't stupid." Casey replied.

"Mom, do you remember that song we used out on tour last summer and no one ever recorded it? We just used it a few times for the really big shows." Maddie asked.

"Maddie, which song is that?" Rayna asked her.

"I Feel a Sin Coming On. I thought that Casey and I could record it and Daphne could do the background harmonies for it." Maddie gave let her in on her plan.

"I don't have a problem with that. Your dad and I wrote that song together. I don't think there's a chance of us ever recordin' it. So, you two can go for it." Rayna gave her permission.

"That's awesome, mom. I promise you that we won't screw it up or anything." Maddie swore to her.

"Rayna, what did you do that was bad enough that you got stuck with Thelma and Louise?" Juliette stuck her head in the door. She was already working on another album. It was in the beginning stages.

"My baby girl is the most adorable little thing in the world, but I do get tired of lookin' at her after a while. Hanging out with these two is better than being stuck in that house all day." Rayna shrugged her shoulders.

"Now I don't have to feel bad for thinkin' that Cadence can be dull as dirt sometimes." Juliette breathed a sigh of relief.

"Cadence is at a fun age. I can't imagine that she's not always getting into something new. It's how babies her age learn. Deac and Jayme learn twice as fast because not only are there two of them they are around Maddie and Daphne all the time. When they are around older kids and young adults they develop faster." Rayna explained to her.

"This is why I come to you with parentin' problems. You typically know just what to say to make me feel better." Juliette grinned.

"Maddie, I just had a good idea. I know that you wanted to bring Daphne in to do the harmonies on that song, but maybe Juliette would be willing. I just think that song is a little old for Daphne to be signing." Rayna made a suggestion.

"I suppose I could always find another song for Daphne to sing with us. I think that would be a really good idea actually, mom." Maddie agreed with her. Since her whole debacle with Cash she had become the model teenager.

"If I'm getting studio time out of this I'm not gonna argue." Juliette didn't put up any resistance.

"Maddie, do you wanna do the guitar work on this or did you want to call someone else in?" Rayna asked her.

"Mom, I know that dad says I'm good enough to be a session guitar player, but I don't think I can do it justice. You need to call in someone who knows what they are doing a little better than I do." Maddie replied.

"I'll call Max. He's likely not doing anything right now other than getting on Hailey's last nerve. I'm sure she will be glad for the break." Rayna pulled out her phone.

"I'd suggest JC, but I know that him and Will are at Rhett's game today." Maddie added.

"Trust me Max is your best bet anyway. He's almost as good as Deacon is. I'd call your daddy, but then he'd have to bring your sister out." Rayna dialed Max's number.

"I don't wanna disturb him and Charlie." Maddie agreed.

* * *

Rhett watched as the manager and the assistant manager walked into the club house. They had both just been ejected from the game along with the most of the coaching staffs from both teams. Today's game was a battle and the umpires' tempers were all running hot. It didn't take much of anything to set them off.

He looked around the dugout to his teammates who all looked at him to have the answers. He looked up in the bleachers behind the dugout and saw Will and JC sitting there. In an instant he made a decision.

"Will, JC, get down here. If we have any hopes of salvaging this game we are gonna need you." He called out to his friends. He turned to the batboy. "You go grab two pairs of cleats and two jerseys from the clubhouse. Be quick 'bout it." He turned to his team. "Things are 'but to get a little crazy just roll with it. We are gonna do our best to bring home that W today. We gotta work together and you guys have got to be willin' to listen to me. I've been playin' this game for twenty-three years now. I know a lot of you are young and inexperienced, but stick with me and I won't steer you wrong."

"What do you need, Rhett?" Will asked. He and JC had climbed down from the stands and into the dugout.

"I need a little bit of help, Will. I hope to hell that you and Jimmy know enough 'bout this game to be base coaches." Rhett looked at them pleadingly as the batboy returned with the cleats and jerseys he had asked for.

"I can coach third base." JC told him.

"I've got first covered." Will assured him.

"Great. That is exactly what I needed to hear." Rhett breathed a sigh of relief. "Get those cleats and jerseys on."

Will and JC changed quickly.

"Captain, where's your next batter?" The first base umpire stuck his head in the dugout.

"Right here," Rhett pointed at their next batter. "Don't just stand 'round get up in that box." He pointed at Will and JC. "Get out there." Rhett put on his batting gloves and helmet since he was supposed to be in the on deck circle.

"Jeff, what the hell is going on with my team?" Lamar barged into the suite that was reserved for his use.

"Today is not a good day. The umps have all lost their minds or something. By the second inning all the coaches for both teams were gone. Your captain rallied and we are beating the snot out of the other team." Jeff reported.

"Why do I have a pitcher on first base right now?" Lamar asked.

"I have no idea I don't really understand the game I just manage your money." Jeff shrugged his shoulders.

"We are gonna fix that during the off season. I am gonna get someone to teach you the ins and outs of the game." Lamar shook his head.

"All I know this is something that Rhett cooked up. He didn't want to take the starting pitcher out of the game because he's doing so well, so he shuffled the entire field around and he is pitching to this batter." Jeff explained.

"I think that boy may be the best investment I have ever made. He is some kind of genius out on that diamond." Lamar watched as Rhett struck the batter out and then shifted the field around again.

"You'd be stupid to lose him that's for sure. He stepped in to the role of manager effortlessly. They aren't winning by this much just because their bats have been on fire today. They are winning because he has been like a chest master today." Jeff marveled.

"If I have anything to say about it he is going to spend his entire career as a Rivermen." Lamar assured him.

"He could bring in the C team right now and they could still mop the floor with them. That's how far out of reach this game is." Jeff informed him.

"He won't do that though. He saw how easy it was for us to steam roll their A team. He's isn't gonna take any risks that he doesn't have to. Where does he have himself batting?" Lamar asked.

"He's in the number three spot. He has two grand slams on the day." Jeff answered.

"That's where he always needs to bat regardless of what position he's playing that day. He is our best batter. I wouldn't be surprised if he got called up to the big show just for the playoffs." Lamar observed.

"You'd have to pay one hell of a price to get him back if that happened. Really and truly he is ready for the majors. This is our Triple A team he has the experience and the temperament to be one of the big dogs." Jeff retorted.

"I have a contingency in place if that happens. I plan to keep him in red and scarlet for as long as I can." Lamar reassured him.

"Whatever you say, boss. You're the one that knows the game plan here." Jeff agreed with him.

"Have you checked in with Highway Sixty-five and asked which of their artists they are gonna use for their first concert here? I need to know so I can start selling tickets." Lamar ordered a bourbon from the waiter.

"I talked to Tandy and she said we can have JC Grayson, The Exes, and Juliette." Jeff consulted his planner.

"That sounds like a damn good lineup to me." Lamar accepted his drink and sipped it thoughtfully.

* * *

"Everybody look alive the boss is in the house." Riff announced when Deacon strolled into the Mile Marker. He'd been employed there since coming back from rehab after his incident out on tour with Luke. Deacon clearly had a thing for underdogs so he had given him a job while he tried to work his way back into his wife's good graces.

"Riff, knock it off." Deacon flipped him off.

"That's harassment I could lodge a complaint against you for that." Riff joked with him. One could argue the wisdom of him working in a bar with all of his substance abuse problems, but

"You won't because I'm not technically your boss and we have been friends for a very long time." Deacon pointed out to him.

"That's true. My boss isn't as nice to me as you are." Riff laughed.

"Let me see the book. Calls need to be made 'bout our anniversary celebration. I don't wanna put it off 'til the last minute. Beverly gets all squirrely when things aren't all lined up ahead of time." Deacon rolled his eyes.

"I will have you know that I heard that." Beverly came out of the back. "Riff, you are worse than Frankie 'bout standin' 'round doin' nothin'."

"It ain't my fault that your boyfriend is flat out useless sometimes." Riff shrugged his shoulders.

"I know. I don't know who exactly to blame for Frankie. I don't think there is any help for him, so I'll just ignore the problem." Beverly nodded her head. That sounded like a good idea to her.

"Bev, are we ready for the big night we have comin' up?" Deacon asked her.

"As ready as we're gonna be. I used Riff for the stuff I normally have you arrange and I have been coordinatin' this with Tandy. Trust me when I say that everythin' is handled." Beverly promised him.

"That is actually great to hear. That is one less thing that I gotta worry 'bout." Deacon sounded relieved.

"Where in the world is my gorgeous niece?" Beverly asked him.

"She is very busy. Momma may have kidnapped her for a little while. Or volunteered to stay at the house with her and the boys once they got back from whatever the hell it was they were doin' with Lamar. I don't even like to think 'bout whatever weird relationship that they have." Deacon got a headache just thinking about what could possibly be going on between his mother and Rayna's father.

"Do what I do and try not to think 'bout it. If you don't you won't realize that there is possibly some Jerry Springer quality shit goin' down." Beverly advised him.

"I don't wanna know the kinda things that your boyfriend has taught you." Deacon checked his phone when it buzzed. "Ya'll are lucky that I ain't got time for this. I gotta go meet up with my wife for God alone knows what reason."

 **XXXXXXXXXX**

Rayna stood on the steps of the courthouse waiting for Deacon she wasn't quite sure what she was doing there either. The only thing that she knew was her sister had called her and told her to meet her there. It was possible that they had to file some paperwork for Highway 65 or something like that.

"Babe, why are we here?" Deacon walked up the steps and kissed her.

"I have no idea. You will have to ask your sister-in-law about that." Rayna huffed. It wasn't like her sister to do pointless things, so she was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt.

"And here she comes with Bucky bringin' up the rear as usual." Deacon grumbled.

"Sorry for making you wait. Someone got tied up in a meeting with Glenn or we would have been here sooner." Tandy apologized. She was dressed nicely in her business attire like always.

"It was an issue that it wouldn't have been fair to make Glenn handle on his own." Bucky wore a nice shirt and tie.

"I wouldn't mind the wait if you would tell me why we are here." Rayna was a tad bit worried that she had left Maddie and Casey to their own devices. Those two alone were bad enough, but they were with Juliette. That was a recipe for something bad happening.

"That's very simple. Bucky and I have a meeting with this judge in his chambers. Babe, we're getting married." Tandy told her.

"No shit?" Deacon asked. "Congratulations, Buck, it's 'bout damn it." He shook his friend's hand.

"Thanks, Deacon." Bucky broke out in a goofy grin.

"You're sure you just wanna do it like this? You don't want daddy here?" Rayna asked her.

"I had the full wedding experience with daddy walking me down the aisle the first time. I don't wanna make a huge deal out of this. It was a spur of the moment decision. You and Deacon are the only two people that we want here. I wouldn't do this without you as my maid of honor. And for whatever reason Bucky wants your husband as his best man." Tandy acted like Deacon hadn't grown on her.

"Of course we would be proud to stand up for you two." Rayna hugged her sister tight.

"Come on let's go get you two kids, hitched." Deacon cheered.

Tandy and Bucky's wedding ceremony consisted of a few words said by the judge in his chambers and the recitation of generic wedding vows, but that was enough for them. Rayna and Deacon both signed as witnesses on their marriage license and that was it.

* * *

The Mile Marker's one-year anniversary party was in full swing. So far the night had been a huge success. At the moment Deacon was up on stage. He sat on a stool with his guitar.

"I'm gonna try out a new one that I just wrote and see what ya'll think of it." He started strumming his guitar.

" _You should know there will be days when you pray for sun, but get the rain. When the tears fall down your pretty face. My love will blow the storm away. In the middle of a sleepless night when your dreams are putting up a fight. When the words I say don't come out right I'm still gonna be right by your side."_ He sang softly. This was the song he had written for Charlie.

" _Life is full of ups and down and I can't change the world around. The only thing that I can do is always keep on lovin' you."_ He closed his eyes as he sang the chorus.

" _The road ain't always shinning gold and happiness is hard to hold. But as our story's bein' told my love for you it don't get old."_

" _Life is full of ups and downs and I can't change the world around. The only thing that I can do is always keep on lovin' you."_ He played a few soft chords on his guitar.

" _Yes, life is full of ups and downs and I can't change the world around. The only thing that I can do is anythin' you want me to. The only thing that I can do is always keep on lovin' you."_ He poured every ounce of feeling he had into that last line.

The bar erupted with applause. Rayna had to wipe a tear away from her eye. The depth of love that he had for their baby girl was staggering.

Rayna joined Deacon on stage for the next song. It was one of the ones off their duet album.

" _Here we are what is left of a husband and a wife. With four good kids who have a way of gettin' on with their lives. And I'm not old, but I'm gettin' a whole lot older every day. It's too late to keep from goin' crazy I've got to get away."_ Deacon started them out. His vocals were more prominent on this track and that was rare for them. They had decided to do something different for a change.

" _The reasons that I can't stay don't have a thing to do with bein' in love and I understand that lovin' a man shouldn't have to be this rough. And you ain't the only one who feels like this world's left you far behind. I don't know why you gotta be angry all the time."_ They sang the chorus together.

" _Our boys are strong now the spittin' image of you when you were young. I hope someday they can see past what you have become."_ Deacon picked up again.

" _And I remember every time I said I'd never leave, but what I can't live with is memories of the way you used to be. The reasons that I can't stay don't have a thing to do with bein' in love. And I understand that lovin' a man shouldn't have to be this rough. And you ain't the only one who feels like this world's left you far behind. I don't know what you gotta be angry all the time."_ They had pulled a little bit from their history together, a little from his parents' marriage, and some from her parents' marriage to get this song.

" _Twenty years have came and went since I walked out of your door. I never quite made it back to the one I was before."_ Deacon's voice was measured as he sang.

" _And God it hurts me to think of you for the light in your eyes was gone. And sometimes I don't know why this old world can't leave well enough alone."_ They stared into each other's eyes as they belted that line out.

" _The reasons that I can't stay don't have a thing to do with bein' in love and I understand that lovin' a man shouldn't have to be this rough. And you ain't the only one who feels like this world's left you far behind. I don't know why you gotta be angry all the time. I don't know why you gotta be angry all the time. I don't know why you gotta be angry all the time."_ They finished the song in unison.

"Damn, Babe, I think you two get better and better at this song writin' thing all the time." Tandy commented to her sister once her and Deacon reclaimed their seats.

"Thanks, Tandy. That one was a hard one to write. We got really raw with that album." Rayna replied.

"You two are always raw, but something about this was better than it normally is." Bucky added.

"That song was written on a sleepless night. I had one twin layin' on top of me and she had the other layin' on top of her. Nothin' was puttin' those two to sleep that night." Deacon shook his head at the memory.

"You've got that right." Rayna agreed with him.

"I can't believe you two are actually letting Thelma and Louise play tonight." Bucky mentioned.

"Why do I get the feelin' that Bucky knows why they're called that and he just doesn't want to tell us?" Deacon arched his eyebrow.

"Probably because Buck knows why they are called that and doesn't want to tell you." Tandy pointed out to him.

"All I know is it involves a pool hall in Texas and I made Gunnar stop talking after that." Bucky held up his hands in a sign of surrender.

"Of course it does." Rayna rolled her eyes.

"Casey is better for Maddie than her last friend at any rate and we all just need to be thankful for that." Tandy pointed out.

"I will not argue with you there." Deacon nodded his head in agreement. "I still can't believe you two just up and got married on a whim. That sounds like somethin' that you'd get on to me and Ray for."

"Speaking of that. Is daddy still mad that you didn't invite him?" Rayna asked.

"Daddy pretty well got over it when June told him if he wasn't such a control freak about some things then his daughters wouldn't feel the need to hide stuff from him." Tandy laughed.

"I can hear her sayin' that. I put nothin' past my momma anymore. She's turned into a feisty little thing since she got away from Paul." Deacon laughed.

"That could be why Charlie is so sassy already and she's only a couple of weeks old." Bucky observed.

"That could very well be. That girl does live up to the Pistol nickname her daddy gave her that's for sure. I mean Maddie could wail, but she had nothin' on Charlie. I don't need to set an alarm clock to know when it's time to feed her she does a damn good job of making sure I know she's hungry." Rayna loved that girl, but she was loud.

"You love her with her little loud mouth and all." Deacon kissed her temple.

"I never said I didn't love her. That's my baby of course I love her. I don't quite get the chance to dote on her all that much because her daddy has that taken care of." Rayna joked and leaned into his side. It was still sometimes hard for her to believe how far they had come.

* * *

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I hope you guys enjoy it. Only one more chapter left and then it is time for the sequel. There is a very good chance that the next chapter may be longer than normal so I can wrap up everyone's story lines and put them in a good place to move forward. Until next time please review.


	100. Chapter 100

A/N: Thanks to all my reviewers. I also want to give a special shout out to my sounding board **thisisserena** for always listening to my ideas no matter how crazy they get.

* * *

Chapter 100

Even though Rayna still had quite a bit of maternity leave left she still jumped at the chance to fill in last minute at the Opry. She really didn't do well sitting around idle. Her oldest two had basically grown up back stage and she had continued the tradition with her younger children. Pretty much wherever she and Deacon went they took their kids with them if at all possible.

"Ray, I don't think she is gonna take this bottle you're gonna have to nurse her." Deacon teased Charlie's lips with the nipple of the bottle. She was having no part of it. Normally it didn't matter to her whether she nursed or took a bottle, but sometimes she would refuse the bottle in favor of Rayna's breast.

"Of course I am, because I have to go on in twenty minutes and she's being difficult." Rayna turned from her vanity to face him and sighed.

"She's not all that difficult. At least there is only one of her." Deacon defended his daughter.

"Deacon, I promise you that I'm not bein' mean to that sweet baby girl. You don't have to defend her from me. Give her here and give me a blanket to cover her with." Rayna laughed and undid the first two buttons on her shirt.

Deacon settled Charlie in her arms and handed her a blanket. "There you go. She's my baby girl, Ray, I gotta defend her even when she's wrong."

"I know you do, babe." Rayna got Charlie latched on and she covered her with the blanket so she wasn't exposed. "Oh, my hungry girl, you act like momma and daddy starve you or something."

"God, mom, it's not bad enough that you do this at home you have to do this in public too?" Maddie groaned when she walked into the room.

"Maddie, your sister has to eat. What do you want me to do let her starve? I promise that one day you are gonna be in this position and I'm gonna give you so much hell." Rayna rolled her eyes at her daughter.

"Ray, she's a teenage girl and I think knowin' that you and I still do the thing that causes babies to be made is what embarrasses her." Deacon pointed out.

"Oh gee, Deacon, do ya think?" Rayna leveled him with a steely look.

"We ain't gonna be doin' that thing that causes babies to made no more if you're gonna be mean to me." Deacon pretended to be hurt.

"I'd like to see you stick to that one. We are bad 'bout not bein' able to hold off and you know it." Rayna had to laugh at that one.

"You two are so gross, I'm just gonna go find Casey or something." Maddie rolled her eyes and stalked off.

"She is so wonderful isn't she?" Rayna groaned.

"She really is." Deacon agreed with her.

"Take your daughter and burp her." Rayna handed Charlie to Deacon and used the blanket to wipe herself off.

Deacon put the baby over his shoulder and burped her gently. He smiled when she let out a loud burp. "Listen to that big burp comin' outta such a little girl." He checked the shoulder of his shirt to make sure she hadn't gotten him. "And no spit up on my shirt. If I had done that with Jayme I would be changin' shirts right now."

"So, you're playin' guitar for me tonight?" Rayna asked him.

"Yeah, I have your set list and I already gave your band the run down." Deacon picked up a toy that Deac had thrown and handed it to him. "You're gonna hang out with Uncle Rhett and Aunt Sadie while momma and daddy are on stage. That'll be so much fun for you." He ruffled both the boys' hair.

"Ok, are we 'bout ready?" Rayna checked her phone for the time.

"Darlin', this is your show I'm ready anytime you are." Deacon told her.

"I'm gonna do something a little different for ya'll tonight. I'm gonna take control of the band from my husband and I'm actually gonna play for a change." Rayna sat down at the piano. There were two stools on the stage. "I got very lucky and I have three wonderful daughters. They are all here with me tonight. Maddie, Daphne, Charlie, this one is for you girls. Your momma loves you." She started to play.

" _In my daughter's eyes I am a hero. I am strong and wise and I know no fear. But the truth is plain to see she was sent to rescue me. I see who I wanna be in my daughter's eyes."_ She looked over at her girls standing on the side of the stage. The first line of that song was for Maddie. She had saved her from being totally alone at a time when she thought Deacon would never get sober. She made eye contact with her oldest.

" _In my daughter's eyes everyone is equal. Darkness turns to light and the world is at peace. This miracle God gave to me gives me strength when I am weak. I find reason to believe in my daughter's eyes."_ Rayna's eyes shifted to Daphne. Deacon had described her best when he called her their sunshine girl. No matter how tough times got she always had a smile on her face and she could find the good in anyone. And she had given her nine more years with Teddy. If not for Daphne they probably would have divorced long before they did.

" _And when she wraps her hand around my finger. Oh it puts a smile in my heart. Everything becomes a little clearer. I realize what life is all about. It's hanging on when your heart has had enough. It's giving more when you feel like giving up. I've seen the light it's in my daughter's eyes."_ Rayna's gaze now landed on Charlie who was content in Deacon's arms. She hoped that she could teach her how to be a strong woman the way that she had her older two girls. She was supposed to teach and guide them, but truthfully every day they gave her a lesson in how to love, and learn, and grow as a person.

" _In my daughter's eyes I can see the future. A reflection of who I am and what will be. And though she'll grow and someday leave. Maybe raise a family. When I'm gone I hope you'll see how happy she made me. For I'll be there in my daughter's eyes."_ Rayna finished and she looked at all three of her daughters. Forget music they were her lasting legacy to the world. They were each a small piece of her.

Deacon handed Charlie to Maddie. "Go hug your momma." He whispered in her ear.

"Come on, Daph." Maddie walked out on stage with her sisters.

Rayna stood up from the piano bench and put her arms around her daughters. "I love you three girls so much."

"I love you, mom." Maddie hugged her with her free arm.

"I love you too, mom." Daphne added.

Rayna kissed them all on the head. "Maddie, Daphne, and Charlie Claybourne, ladies and gentlemen." She spoke softly into her mic.

Deacon walked back out on stage and kissed her cheek. "That was so good, baby."

Rayna smiled at him. "Alright, ya'll I'm gonna do somethin' else I don't normally do. I'm gonna let him hijack my set for one song." She made a quick exit from the stage to collect herself.

Deacon stepped up and started strumming his guitar. He caught Rhett and Sadie's attention to make sure that the boys could hear this song. _"Don't you ever let this world push you around. Use your head and keep your feet firmly on the ground. And if you get knocked down get back up and try again. And don't you ever lose that sparkle in your eyes. Don't bottle up your passion like a jar of fireflies. And if you ever lose sight of your light and you feel lie givin' in. Don't you forget your faith in God above. Don't you forget your mom and daddy's love. When you fear, when you fail, when you feel you're gonna fall follow your heart and always believe in the underdog."_ He'd written this song for his boys.

" _Don't buy a thing unless you can pay in cash. Go ahead and throw those credit cards in the trash. Love is a virtue honesty is the key. Say your prayers, brush your teeth, and don't you watch too much tv. If you're down in the count one strike away choke up and crowd the plate and put the ball in play. Keep nose down when you win and keep your head up when you lose and you're gonna lose. But don't you forget your faith in God above. Don't you forget your mom and daddy's love. When you fear when you fail when you feel you're gonna fall follow your heart and always believe in the underdog."_ Deacon had learned this lesson the hard way and he didn't want that for his sons.

" _And there will come a day when I will fly away. So make me smile while we're apart you gotta sing from your soul and play with all of your hearts."_ He wailed that line out.

" _There's a good chance your heart will break in two. Trust that God has someone special planned for you. Did you know I was down on love and luck when he sent your mom to me? And someday you'll have babies of your own. So cherish every moment you'll blink and they'll be grown. The greatest honor I've ever had is havin' you call me your dad. Boys don't forget your faith in God above. Don't you forget your mom and daddy's love. When you fear, when you fail, when you feel you're gonna fall follow your heart and always believe in the underdog. When you fear when you fail when you feel you're gonna fall follow your heart and always believe in the underdog."_ Deacon finished the song strong. He waved to his boys with a big smile on his face.

* * *

Deacon was a little startled when he opened the front door of his home and found Luke on the other side. "Well, hey, Luke, come on in."

"Uh, hey, Deacon, I'm sorry just to show up unannounced like this. I know ya'll got the new little one and everythin', but I was hopin' it would be possible for me to speak to Rayna." Luke replied.

"It's very possible for you to speak to her. She will honestly be glad to see someone other than me for a change." Deacon chuckled. "Hey, Ray, you got company."

"Give me two minutes and I will be right down!" Rayna called to him from upstairs.

"You came at a good time the tiny tornados are nappin'. You might actually be able to talk to her 'bout somethin'." Deacon led Luke into the music room.

"This is a really nice set up ya'll got goin' here." Luke made conversation.

"Thanks, we had a really great contractor. I got one of the guys I know to come in and do the recordin' studio professionally." Deacon replied.

"Deacon, even back in the day you always knew a guy who could get things done." Luke laughed.

"I tell him all the time that his middle name should be I Know a Guy." Rayna walked in with Charlie laying on her shoulder. "Hey, Luke."

"Hey, Rayna. I didn't wanna disturb you, but I wanted to talk a little business with you." Luke told her.

"I'm open to that." Rayna handed Charlie off to Deacon. "I'm sure that you can keep her entertained for a little while."

"I sure can. Don't worry 'bout the kids you just take your time." Deacon left the room so she and Luke could talk.

"What can I do for you, Luke?" Rayna asked him.

"I'll be frank with you, Rayna. I'm goin' under. I'm barely keepin' my head above water here. Since the whole thing with the IRS and the Riff situation I've been bleedin' money. I've taken a dive in the charts and I can barely sell tickets. The only way I get out of this situation with my reputation in tact is for me to make the decision to shut it down. My family is fallin' apart. Colt ran off and joined the Army that was after he refused to speak to me for weeks. I need to take a step back and focus on what's really important. I can't do that if I go down with a sinkin' ship." Luke admitted.

"I know a thing or two about difficult teenagers. We had our own drama with Maddie a few months ago. That's why I didn't really bother to tour this summer. My daughter needed me more than I needed to perform. As for the other part I'm not really sure what you're askin' me for." Rayna replied.

"I'm givin' you the chance to absorb my whole label into yours. It's not like I have that many artists and it's not gonna cost you much. With as well as you've been doin' I'm pretty sure that it would be pocket change for you. I don't know what else to do." Luke explained.

"I think that there is a deal to be made in there somewhere. What I can do is talk to the artists that I'm interested in and see about buying out their contracts." Rayna offered.

"Hell, Rayna, I'm thinkin' that five million will get you all my artists." Luke ran his hand through his hair.

"Luke, I'm really not the person that you need to talk to about this. You'd be better off talking to Tandy and Bucky. If you want I can make you an appointment with them. I'm willing to seriously consider this." Rayna bit her lip.

"I think that's fair. I'm more than willin' to sit down and talk to them." Luke agreed with that.

"Alright then, I'll make the call you can go down there and discuss this with them. And, Luke, if you need anything else like maybe a friend to talk to the door is always open." Rayna smiled at him.

"Thanks, Rayna, I sure appreciate that." Luke smiled back at her.

* * *

Lamar had gone all out to transform the stadium into a venue for a concert. The roof was closed and a huge jumbotron was set up in the middle of it. An open concept stage had been set up so all the seats in the stadium could be filled rather than just half the stadium. The concert was a complete sell out. JC was on the stage at the moment. He was opening for The Exes who were opening for Juliette.

" _Hometown crowd Friday night lights second string quarterback comin' off the sidelines. One last play Hail Mary prayer holdin' their breath when he threw it in the air. Now cups are raisin' flags are wavin' he's on their shoulders famous."_ JC put a lot of energy into his performance.

" _Here's one for the underdogs let 'em hear you ya'll. Well hell yeah they might get knocked down, but everybody loves how. They don't stay down for long pretty soon they're ten feet tall. From odds stacked can't win to the comeback kid. Yeah come on here's one for the underdogs."_ He did some pretty impressive work on his guitar.

" _Granddad's farm handed down everybody said he'd run it in the ground. Spend four long years bailin' that hay little by little got the whole paid. Hard work's payin' off you wouldn't believe he's makin' small town history."_

" _Here's one for the underdogs let 'em hear you ya'll. Well hell yeah they might get knocked down, but everybody loves how. They don't stay down for long pretty soon they're ten feet tall. From odds stacked can't win to the comeback kid. Yeah come on here's one for the underdogs."_ He launched into his guitar solo here. He'd really come a long way with his skills since he'd started working with Deacon.

" _Here's one for the underdogs let 'em hear you ya'll. Well hell yeah they might get knocked down, but everybody loves how. They don't stay down for long pretty soon they're ten feet tall. From odds stacked can't win to the comeback kid. Yeah come on here's one for the underdogs. Yeah, here's one for the underdogs."_ He took his hat off and waved to the crowd when he was finished.

" _You can bury me alive you can throw away your shovel no matter what you try I will rise up from the rubble."_ Scarlett and Gunnar started their set.

" _Never put me down keep me on the ground never gonna fade away. One step ahead of bein' stone cold dead. I'll do whatever it takes. And I'm never gonna hit the brakes."_ Scarlett's voice was more in the foreground on this song.

" _You can bury me alive you can throw away your shovel no matter what you try I will rise up from the rubble. I ain't here to start no fight, but if I finish you're in trouble. You can knock me down to size, but I will rise up from the rubble."_ Their voices blended together perfectly as usual. This was their hit single off their album.

" _Always been a run around one foot outta town catch me no if you can. Couple times been stuck, but my numbers up sinkin' down in the quicksand, but I crawl back out again."_

" _You can bury me alive you can throw away your shovel no matter what you try I will rise up from the rubble. I ain't here to start no fight, but if I finish you're in trouble. You can knock me down to size, but I will rise up from the rubble."_

" _Oh yeah,"_ Scarlett wailed while Gunnar went to town on the guitar.

" _You can bury me alive you can throw away your shovel no matter what you try I will rise up from the rubble. You can put me in your sights, but I'm gonna burst your bubble. In one blink of an eye I will rise up from the rubble. I will rise up from the rubble. I will rise up from the rubble. I will rise up from the rubble."_ They finished the song singing back to back.

Gunnar got a stool and sat it in the middle of the stage. "Scarlett, have a seat."

"Gunnar, what in the world are you up to?" Scarlett sat down.

"Oh, you'll see." Gunnar winked at her. "A few you might not know this, but our first anniversary is comin' up soon and I wanted to do somethin' special for my wife." He picked up his acoustic guitar and started strumming it.

" _I'll be right here when you fall. Hold you close until you calm down. It's not as bad as it seems you still have me. I'll be right here wait and see. You can count on me."_ Gunnar looked into Scarlett's eyes as he sang.

" _When you think you've lost it all. Remember it's ok to be afraid. It's not as dark as it seems you still have me. When you think you've lost your way. You can count on me. You can count on me. To let it go to let you in to guide you home. When your heart is heavy I'll do my best to live and learn to be the one you can always turn to. You can count on me."_

Scarlett smiled at him as he sang. Despite the hell everyone gave him he was pretty perfect.

" _It' not as bad as it seems. I'll be right here when you fall. You can count on me. You can count on me. To let it go to let you in to guide you home. When your heart is heavy. Do my best to live and learn to be the one you can always turn to. You can count on me."_ Gunnar finished singing softly and then he bent down and kissed Scarlett.

" _If you're gonna go then go stop lookin' out the window. Don't wake me up to say goodbye you're on your way. If you're gonna go then go If you're gonna cheat then cheat. Lyin' is a one-way street. You can't turn around at least not in this town if you're gonna cheat then cheat."_ Juliette walked around the stage as she sang.

" _One thing I used to love about you baby you used to deal the cards with no slight of hand. You used to say what you mean and mean what you say look in my eyes and stay face to face. You can trust me you know that you can. Well there goes the last honest man."_ She belted out to the cheering crowd. She was enjoying an upswing in her popularity again.

" _If you're gonna pray then pray. I'm not gonna kneel with you or show you the way. I'm not Jesus no I can't forgive your soul. If you're gonna pray then pray. One thing I used to love about you baby. You weren't a beggar holdin' out your hand. You used to say what you mean and mean what you say. Look in my eyes and stay face to face. You can trust me you know that you can. Well there goes the last honest man."_ She stood close to Avery as he played the guitar solo. She got him to play lead guitar for her when he didn't have anything else to do.

" _Let me help you with your things baby just keep the ring. One thing I used to love about you baby you knew when it was time to fold a hand. When you walk out the door won't turn around not hear me cry, but you block out the sound. Baby I'll understand but there goes the last honest man. Man. Bye bye baby bye bye. Bye bye baby bye bye. Bye bye baby bye bye."_ Juliette waved to the crowd when she had finished singing.

* * *

"Hey, Will, you can come stand over here with me." Greg Henderson was Mack's agent. They were in the press room after a preseason hockey game. Mack was giving a press conference.

"Do you have any idea what he's up to? He's never wanted me to sit in on one of these before." Will whispered to him.

"I have no idea what he's up to. I just deal with the fallout." Greg shrugged his shoulders.

Mack stood up at the podium his team cap on. "I can't believe in this day and age this is something that I actually have to get up here and say, but if I want the endless questions about it to stop I may as well answer them. As I'm sure you're all well aware I'm gay. And I'm sure that you also know that I'm dating Will Lexington. There I said what we've all known forever and nothing bad happened. I will say this though I'm a hockey player that's gay not a gay hockey player. And that's pretty much it thanks for your time. If you have any questions about the actual game I'll be more than happy to answer those."

The press corps just looked stunned.

Mack left the podium and walked over to Will and took his hand. "Hey, babe, I'm glad you came."

"Mack, you didn't have to do that." Will told him.

"Everyone knew anyway, Will. You know that my coaches and my teammates know and it didn't make them any difference. I love you, Will. I'm tired of hiding that and pretending like I don't. Not only that, but we were all sick of getting the question about my sexuality. I'll probably see a little bit of fallout from it, but it doesn't matter to me. That in no way takes away from the job I do out on the ice." Mack replied.

"I love you too, Mack." Will kissed him.

"We should move in together, Will." Mack suggested.

"Really?" Will asked him.

"Yeah, really. I mean it would be more your place than mine anyway because I'm gone more than you are, but it would be nice when we're both in the same city if we had each other to come home too." Mack replied.

"I say let's do it." Will kissed him again.

* * *

"Hey, what are you doing in here?" Rayna stood in the door of the music room watching Deacon strum on his guitar to entertain the kids.

"I'm not doin' nothin' at all, but entertainin' these boogers." Deacon looked up and smiled at her.

"I see that. I love how attentive you are to them." Rayna walked over to the shelf that held their vinyl collection she took one of the albums off the shelf and put it in the record player. She took Deacon's guitar and held out her hand to him. "Come dance with me, babe."

"You know I don't dance, but for you I'll make an exception." Deacon got up off the couch and gathered her into his arms.

"That's why I love you, babe." Rayna laid her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I love you too, baby. How did we finally get it so right?" He asked her.

"I think we both finally stop fighting each other and learned to fight for each other." She was content to just sway around the room with him while their boys watched. Charlie didn't care what they did as long as they paid attention to her when she cried.

"You're right, Ray." He could that the boys were showing signs of a mutiny if they weren't entertained so he dipped Rayna back. They both laughed in approval.

"You are why they are so damn bad when they want to be." Rayna laughed.

"I'm not the only one to blame for those two little monkeys bein' little monkeys. I think we can safely lay the blame on our parents." Deacon pointed out to her. He spun her around and then pulled her back to him.

"I can agree with you there. I won't put all the blame on you for a change." Rayna teased him.

"That's so nice of you baby. I don't know what I would do without your kindness on matters such as that." Deacon joked right back with her.

They kept swaying along to the music not needing to talk. They didn't have to use words when their body language said so much already.

"I want a boy to look at me the way dad looks at mom one day." Daphne whispered to her sister. They were standing back watching their parents carry on like they were the only two people in the world.

"Daph, everyone wants a man to look at them the way he looks at her. They don't even know that the rest of exist right now." Maddie whispered back.

"They like really love each other don't they?" Daphne asked her.

"They really do. It's good to see both of them so happy." Maddie smiled fondly.

"Do you think she ever loved dad?" Daphne made reference to Teddy.

"I know so. They did love each other once, there was just no getting in the way of that. But I'm glad that they lasted as long as they did, because that gave me you. I know that I've been a really rotten sister to you lately and I'm sorry." Maddie put her arm around her shoulders.

"It's ok, dad says that you were just going through a phase and sometimes that meant we have to save you from everyone yourself included." Daphne replied.

"I don't think I've ever said it, but thank you for telling him where I was that night. You helped save me from making the worst mistake in my life and I will always be grateful to you for that, Daph." Maddie had needed to get that off her chest for months.

"You're welcome, Maddie. I'll always try my best to help save you even if it is from yourself." Daphne hugged her tight.

"What do you say we go save our brothers and sister from our gross parents?" Maddie asked.

"Let's do it," Daphne agreed with a giggle.

"Ya'll are aware that we can hear you right?" Rayna turned around in Deacon's arms to look at them.

"We resent bein' called gross. We ain't gross. This is what love looks like, my girls." Deacon grinned at them.

"Now, get on here and dance with us." Rayna told them.

Maddie and Daphne came into the room and picked their brothers up and started dancing with them.

Deacon took a good look around at his wife, his daughters, and his sons. He finally had it all and it was better than he ever dreamed it would be. _"Two arms around me heaven to ground me and a family that always calls me home."_ He sang softly in Rayna's ear. They truly did have a life that was good.

* * *

A/N: Here is the last chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. Thank you all so much for sticking it out with me through the ups and the downs. The next story is coming soon and until then I have two other Nashville fics to keep you entertained. Thank you all for being such loyal readers and giving me amazing feedback as a writer that means everything to me. I know I said I might make this longer, but I got to that last scene and it was too perfect to continue on after it. You won't have long to wait to find out what happened to all of our favorites though. We still have a lot of time to kill until January 5 and it's easier together. Until next time please review.


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